Danica Patrick: 5 Predictions for Her First Full Season in Nationwide Series

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Last week Danica Patrick made her highly publicized announcement that she plans to race a full Nationwide Series schedule next season. 

Patrick is leaving the IndyCar Series to drive NASCAR Nationwide full time for JR Motorsports. She will also run a few select races in the Sprint Cup Series for Stewart-Haas Racing, including the 2012 Daytona 500. 

All eyes will be on Patrick, as she has many skeptics. 

Here are five bold predictions for the driver's next season.

She Will Be the Most Popular Nationwide Driver

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Danica Patrick transcends racing into pop culture. 

She is a woman in a predominantly male sport. 

She has good looks, moxy, and an attitude.

She has endorsements with several companies. 

She has posed for numerous magazines and has made cameo appearances on television.

And most of all, she is good with kids and fans.

Patrick and her marketing team are some of the very best and have created a lucrative money making relationship with GoDaddy.com.

All that being contributes to her easily becoming the most popular driver on the Nationwide circuit.

She Will Have Atleast Three Did Not Finishes

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Danica Patrick is still relatively new to stock car racing, as she has only competed in 20 races.  There will be a learning curve that comes with some bumps and bruises. 

You can bet that her fellow Nationwide drivers will not back down and will test her every week.  Patrick has been known for wrecking too many race cars and next year will be no different.

She Will Get into a Fight with Another Driver

Patrick has had her share of run-ins with fellow drivers.  She is feisty and seems to want to prove herself. This will lead to dust-ups with other drivers who think she doesn't belong. 

They are wrong, Patrick deserves her shot at Pro Stock racing. NASCAR is a business about money and sponsorships and Patrick is one of the very best at that. She is also a pretty good driver. 

The spotlight and pressure will be on her at all times, further amping up the intensity of every race.  Her struggles will lead to frustration which will likely be taken out on another driver.  You can bank on Patrick and a fellow Nationwide driver getting into it next season.  Let the fireworks begin.

She Will Get More Than One Top Five

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With all the hoopla regarding the switch, much has been made about whether she deserves this chance. 

Streaking NASCAR driver Brad Keselowski tweeted this about Patrick,"assent up the ladder of the sport thru various branding 'techniques' (swimsuit ads etc) only serves to undermine the...future credibility of female races who wish to make it based on skill, mental toughness and a never give up attitude.  That to me is wrong. Essentially, she has opened a Pandora's box for all female racers. If she doesn't succeed, no female will get the chance for years to come." 

Those are harsh words for a driver who has three top 10s in seven starts this year. Danica Patrick is smart and a competitor.  She will undoubtedly work hard to succeed next season. 

Patrick will prove doubters wrong and secure one or more top five finishes.  Patrick will do better than most people expect. With that being said, she will still have her ups and downswhich brings me to my final prediction.

She Will Not Win a Race

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Danica Patrick knows that she will be facing an uphill battle. Last season, after her first Nationwide race, she said, "It's important to have realistic expectations. There's going to be spikes in performance, I don't doubt that. But there's also going to be tough days."

She has only one win in her career and that was in Japan when she was running with a less than stellar field.  Patrick will not get to victory lane next season.  Nationwide will only gain publicity from Patrick's arrival, making it a win-win for both parties.  One thing is for sure, it should be a wild ride next season in the NASCAR Nationwide series.