Danica Patrick, Andretti Green Racing, IndyCar Series, T.J. Patrick, Team Penske, Target Chip Ganassi Racing, Rockford, Illinois
No promises, but...
This is the season when Danica gets that first IndyCar Series win – just ask her dad!
Words Jeff Olson Main Image Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images
Ask T.J. Patrick what he thinks about his daughter’s chances of winning
an IndyCar Series race in 2008, and you’ll receive an optimistic reply. It
will happen, he says, crossing his fingers. That and a top-three finish in
the final standings.
Overly optimistic? Not really. Consider that Danica Patrick finished
seventh last year in the final standings and came close to winning some
races, and it doesn’t seem so far out of reach.
“It’s not really that far off,” she says, chuckling at her dad’s prediction.
“Last year I had a chance at the top five in points. It was a little bit of a
long shot, but it was there. There was a chance. It was possible. For
anybody to have a season like that – multiple wins and a top-three
finish in points – is always difficult. The competition is so great when
you get that close to the top. But once you reach the level of driving
that the guys at Andretti Green and Penske and Ganassi are at,
it’s anybody’s year.”
Not only did Patrick finish seventh in points last year,
she also led 17 laps, had the best finish of her
career (second at Detroit) and was in a position to
win several races, making the lofty goals seem
more reasonable. The demands are internal, of
course, a pressure Patrick has been applying
CLOSE QUARTERS
since she began racing go-karts around Rockford, Ill., when she was in
junior high school. With T.J. at her side, Danica advanced through karting
into formula racing in Europe and eventually reached the top levels of
open-wheel racing in America.
While clearly talented, Patrick understands that circumstances often
play an inordinate function in the outcome of races.
“Luck plays a role in it,” she says. “Everybody sees that. Sometimes things
don’t go your way, but sometimes they do. Sometimes everything just falls
into place and goes your way. It happens to almost all championships. Sure,
the driver is good and had a great season, but at some point they
encounter some good fortune. That’s just the way racing is.”
As for the much-anticipated first victory, Patrick isn’t making promises.
She knows it’s close, and she also knows how important it will be – the
first win by a female driver in a major closed-course
motorsports event in the USA. She also knows that
it might be surprising.
“It probably will happen when I least
expect it,” she says.
As for Dad and his expectations?
“That‘s kind of demanding,” Danica
says with a laugh. “Don’t you think?”
INDYCAR SERIES 2008 FAN GUIDE 41
To view a Ceros magazine you need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser and have the flash player 8 or higher installed. To install the latest flash player, click the icon above, install the flash plugin and then click here to refresh this page.