Daytona 500 2012: Why NASCAR Needs Strong Showing from Danica Patrick

Sunday will be a tremendously important race in NASCAR and Danica Patrick. A strong showing there and she establishes herself as a real force in the sport. A poor showing and her profile will be lowered, as she will be on the wrong end of the perception vs. reality battle. 

I could say something as simple as the sport needs a big name to do well to grow, but that would be foolish. NASCAR is a money-making machine that has grown a ton in recent years. Whether Patrick does well or not, NASCAR as a company will be fine. 

But the last thing any organization wants is the perception that someone has a high profile for nothing more than a publicity stunt. With Patrick, you have a distinct possibility that it will happen. 

Let's look at the profile of Patrick:

She's a woman, and a good-looking one at that. In sports, that tends to supersede production when it comes to getting hype (witness Anna Kournikova). 

It's not that NASCAR needs a person like this at the forefront to be big, but the perception that they might be putting her in such a position to grow the sport is not one that NASCAR would want to fight. 

While Patrick was successful in IndyCar racing, she was hardly the series' best driver. Now, she doesn't need to be the absolute best here either, but having a high profile, middle of the pack driver would not be favorable for NASCAR.

If that were to happen, Patrick's star power would be wasted. Patrick is not new to the spotlight, so she would easily slide under the radar if her performances were mediocre.

Now, if she comes out and does well, then we have an entirely different story. All of a sudden, you have a high profile woman who's doing well. Yes, the sport is already strong, but that only expands the audience and profile. 

The advantage to having the Daytona 500 at the beginning of the year is that it's the biggest race of the season. If Patrick comes out and does well in the Daytona 500, she doesn't really need to follow it up with a strong season. If Patrick comes up big on the grandest stage, then she's already a real force.

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