Could Danica Patrick Move to NASCAR?

IS NASCAR READY FOR THIS???

YOU BETCHA!!!! .......... WELL MAYBE

For Danica Patrick's sake, it must be the right move, under the right conditions, at the right time as the clock is ticking...

Down boy, down!!! Bad race fan!!!

The potential for marketing millions and eye-popping media attention could be overwhelming, but for Danica Patrick to consider a move to NASCAR, she could raipidly become but a shooting star if she did not handle the move properly. NASCAR veteran, Johnny Benson discusses the possibility in the following column. We urge you to read this posting so we don’t have to repeat his key points. http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/30865990/

We believe the move directly to Sprint Cup would be ill-advised. When and if the time comes, she’d surely push aside Dale Earnhardt Jr., fellow Go Daddy client, as the sport’s media sensation. We must look at the success other open wheel stars have had moving to Sprint Cup. Tony Stewart moved from being IRL champ in 1997 to being NASCAR rookie of the year in 1999. In 1998, he got his feet wet running a full-time Busch season.

Juan Montoya has had some success but is not yet positioned to be a Chase contender. Ganassi racing was not a tier one team when Montoya started. How successful Earnhardt/Ganassi racing will be has yet to be determined, but from a driver’s standpoint that is in Montoya’s and Martin Truex Jr.’s hands. Sam Hornish begins his second year with team Penske and is just beginning to show true Sprint Cup ability. Other racers have not been so successful.

How much does Danica Patrick have at stake as she would be well-advised to spend a couple years in Camping World Trucks or the Nationwide series before making her Sprint Cup debut. Perhaps, trucks could be an attractive option if she could split time between NASCAR and IRL.

If she passes the test, would there be a place for her with Hendricks, Roush-Fenway, Joe Gibbs, or Richard Childress? Maybe not. How’s this as a possibility, Danica Patrick racing as a third or fourth car for Tony Stewart’s operation. Stewart, of course, is an open wheel champ and knows the challenges. Could Stewart play second fiddle no matter how well he races to the media draw Danica Patrick would bring to the sport?

We would see the road leading her to Stewart-Haas as the most interesting possibility, and folks, you heard it first from your friendly Right Minded Fellow!