(Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)
There is no doubt that NASCAR would welcome Danica Patrick to their field of drivers, and Patrick herself has said that she has interest in coming over from the Indy Racing Series.
Seeing a driver of her caliber come to NASCAR would be great because she would bring a lot of attention, not to mention a lot of fan support.
The problem with Patrick coming over right now is that she is coming over totally in the dark about how to drive a stock car.
Her coming over to NASCAR makes me think of a line from "Days of Thunder", when Cole Trickle was testing his car after a lot of bad finishes.
Harry Hogge told Trickle during a test, "When you were running Indy Cars out west, the tires were twice as wide and the car weighed half as much. Now your car weighs twice as much and the tires are half as wide. You're burning 'em up."
Should Patrick make the move from her Andretti Green Racing team to NASCAR, she first must get some seat time of some kind, but not in a Sprint Cup car.
Much like the other open-wheel drivers that are in Sprint Cup, Montoya and Hornish, Patrick needs to begin in the Nationwide or Truck Series to get used to the different handling characteristics and the feel of being in a closed cockpit. There is no way that Patrick could immediately jump from open-wheel into the Sprint Cup Series.
Even if Patrick does come to NASCAR, the odds of having success are strongly against her.
Both Montoya and Hornish have been less than impressive in their tenure in NASCAR, as Montoya averages a career average finish of 22nd, and Hornish averages 28th.
Montoya has recorded the only points win between the two when he won at the Infineon Raceway in 2007, while Hornish has two consecutive victories in the Sprint Showdown.
The most successful Indy Car driver to make the move to NASCAR has been Tony Stewart with thirty four wins and two titles. However, Stewart had to earn his way into the Cup Series by racing in the then-Busch Series to get his ride with Joe Gibbs.
One thing Patrick has going for her is her attitude and passion to succeed. Her tantrums at certain drivers are similar to those of Kyle Busch, and when she is not happy with how she runs, she's not afraid to say it.
I am a big fan of Danica Patrick, and I know she'll make a decision that she feels will be best for her.
However, she is not ready to make the move to NASCAR, but not right now.
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