Danica Patrick: Decision to Move to NASCAR Proves To Be Prophetic

Danica Patrick has officially ended her affiliation with the racing series where she gained notoriety, IndyCar, be it amidst tragic circumstances and a race she and her fellow competitors never completed.

Patrick was never a fan of road courses in the IndyCar series and always performed better on the oval tracks.

After the horrendous crash at Las Vegas that resulted in the death of two-time Indianapolis 500 winner, Dan Wheldon, there may be fewer races on the fast 1.5-mile tracks with the open-wheel cars.

Patrick's decision to move to NASCAR full-time in 2012 as a driver in the Nationwide series for JR Motorsports may have been one of the wisest career moves she ever made.

Auto racing is a dangerous sport and the drivers accept that death and injuries can go along with the challenge of high-speed competition in fast cars running in tight packs.

Patrick has openly stated that she enjoys the NASCAR atmosphere with the drivers, teams, owners and fans, but now the protection provided by the COT style car may be what she treasures most.

Many of the IndyCar drivers, including Patrick, were vocal about the potential danger of the Las Vegas finale race. The cars approached speeds of 220 mph plus and it was a given they would go three wide.

It was the final race of the season for the series with a larger than normal field and the drivers were expected to charge hard, but they raced in the beginning as if it was the final 20 laps.

Drivers of racecars don't like to back off, after all, they are racing.

Patrick had the wisdom to lift when things looked chaotic and she decided to stay low on the Las Vegas track, which kept her safe when all hell broke loose.

The GoDaddy.com driver is a quick study with common sense and the ability to analyse situations on the track, traits that will bode well for her when she is running with 42 other NASCAR competitors.

Though she has received criticism for not having better finishes in NASCAR, she has made great strides in her learning curve with the stock cars considering the relatively brief seat time she's had.

Patrick is enthusiastic about her move to NASCAR which may well give her the best shot at winning races and being a contender.

The GoDaddy.com driver may be petite, but she is aggressive. Her goals have been modest this year in the Nationwide series with top-15 finishes being the target as she continues to gain confidence.

Patrick will run her final Nationwide races this season at Texas Motor Speedway, Phoenix International Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway, the last three races on the schedule.

The 2012 season will not only find her full time in the second tier series, but she will run a partial NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule with a car from Stewart-Haas Racing.

Patrick certainly never expected her last race in the IndyCar series to unfold as it did, but if she ever second-guessed her decision to move to NASCAR, she now knows she made the right move.