Danica Patrick: Latest News and 2014 Sprint Cup Standings Ahead of Charlotte

Despite being out of the Chase Grid for the second straight season, Danica Patrick has made a dent with her recent results. Outside of a poor finish at Dover, Patrick has finished inside the top 20 in three of the four Chase events.

Since a career-best result of sixth in Atlanta, the Stewart-Haas Racing driver has been 20th or better in five of the six races. During that span, she also has an average finish of 16.83.

Those numbers certainly aren't awe-inspiring, but they show continued improvement on the track. After reaching the top 20 in just two of the first 10 events this season, continuing these results might mean more for her future.

Another test of that success will come at Charlotte, a track where she qualified fourth earlier in the year before falling to 39th due to a blown engine. Prior to the Bank of America 500, here's a look at the latest news and standings for Patrick.

Pos.	Driver	Points	Wins	Top 5	Top 10
1	Joey Logano*	3048	5	14	19
2	Kyle Busch	3042	1	7	13
3	Carl Edwards	3039	2	7	12
4	Ryan Newman	3039	0	2	12
5	Denny Hamlin	3037	1	6	13
6	Kevin Harvick	3033	2	10	15
7	Matt Kenseth	3031	0	11	18
8	Jeff Gordon	3031	4	11	19
9	Kasey Kahne	3023	1	3	10
10	Brad Keselowski	3009	5	13	16
11	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	3006	3	11	17
12	Jimmie Johnson	3004	3	10	18
28	Danica Patrick	625 (N/A)	0	0	3

Race	Track	Start	Finish
Hollywood Casino 400	Kansas Speedway	29	16
AAA 400	Dover International Speedway	13	25
Sylvania 300	New Hampshire Motor Speedway	18	19
MyAfibStory.com 400	Chicagoland Speedway	18	19
Federated Auto Parts 400	Richmond International Raceway	13	16
Oral-B USA 500	Atlanta Motor Speedway	27	6
Irwin Tools Night Race	Bristol Motor Speedway	24	27
Pure Michigan 400	Michigan International Speedway	14	18
Cheez-It 355	Watkins Glen International	43	21
GoBowling.com 400	Pocono Raceway	10	30
Brickyard 400	Indianapolis Motor Speedway	14	42
Camping World RV Sales 301	New Hampshire Motor Speedway	29	22
Coke Zero 400	Daytona International Speedway	29	8
Quaker State 400	Kentucky Speedway	10	21
Toyota/Save Mart 350	Sonoma Raceway	11	18
Quicken Loans 400	Michigan International Speedway	27	17
Pocono 400	Pocono Raceway	16	37
FedEx 400	Dover International Speedway	28	23
Coca-Cola 600	Charlotte Motor Speedway	4	39
5-Hour Energy 400	Kansas Speedway	9	7
Aaron's 499	Talladega Superspeedway	7	22
Toyota Owners 400	Richmond International Raceway	35	34
Bojangles' Southern 500	Darlington Raceway	33	22
Duck Commander 500	Texas Motor Speedway	24	27
STP 500	Martinsville Speedway	10	32
Auto Club 400	Auto Club Speedway	27	14
Food City 500	Bristol Motor Speedway	36	18
Kobalt 400	Las Vegas Motor Speedway	22	21
The Profit on CNBC 500	Phoenix International Raceway	33	36
Daytona 500	Daytona International Speedway	27	40

Latest News

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It might not have been another top 10 for Patrick at Kansas, but it was certainly still a positive race.

Qualifying 29th and falling a lap down for much of the race, Patrick earned the lap back late and held on for another solid finish. Following the race, Patrick spoke about her day in Kansas, per an SHR release.

"We finished strong,” Patrick said. “The Aspen Dental car was good, but we just could not get our lap back. I think we were down a lap for like 200 laps, but when we got it back, we made the move. Tony Gibson (crew chief) and the guys gave me a good car, and I’m happy with where we finished up."

Speaking of Gibson, the No. 10 car's crew chief provided his take on Patrick's performance:

Charlotte might be one of Gibson's favorite tracks, but it hasn't been a great one for his current driver.

During her career in Charlotte, Patrick has just one top-20 finish and an average finish of 29.5 in four points races. A blown engine ruined any chances of a strong run in Charlotte in May, a race Jeff Gluck of USA Today believed she had a chance to win:

"

Kansas changed everything. Patrick was solid all weekend, and she's carried the momentum right into Charlotte. Her confidence is high and there's reason to believe a top-five finish — and, yes, maybe even a win — is possible.

If anything, her excellent qualifying effort (she also was fastest in the second round of knockout qualifying) embodied Patrick's improvement this season.

"

What started as a great potential story in North Carolina ended up in smoke. But with another chance to earn a career-best finish at the track, Patrick is eyeing yet another top-20 result on Sunday.

Here's a look at Patrick's career results in Charlotte, via DriverAverages.com.

Date	Finish	Start	Laps Led	Driver Rating	Status
May 25, 2014	39	4	0	63.5	Engine
Oct. 12, 2013	20	35	0	55.2	Running
May 26, 2013	29	24	0	49.1	Running
May 27, 2012	30	40	0	42.9	Running

Looking to make a statement in the Chase, Patrick proved again in Kansas she can compete. Simply remaining on the track and keeping a clean car, the SHR driver's day was better than several drivers in the running for a title.

With rookies Kyle Larson and Austin Dillon both finishing inside the top 10, Patrick will need another one soon to prove she's anywhere near the same pedigree. If all goes well in Charlotte, she might just come close to registering that much-needed result.

Predicted finish: 12th

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