Here's a quick introduction about myself since this is my first blogging post and then I'll jump into the good stuff. I'm Rachel Almario, I am a Junior at Clayton State University majoring in Communications and Media Studies so I can eventually work in NASCAR. That's about it. Now to the good stuff I feel I need to vent about.
Today Danica Patrick (Indy Car driver and now full-time NASCAR driver) made her announcement that she will be running full time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series in 2012 and run a handful of Sprint Cup races with Stewart-Haas Racing also in 2012. Also part of the plan is for Danica to become a full-time Sprint Cup Series driver in 2013 with Stewart-Haas Racing. For the past year, Danica has been running part-time for JR Motorsports in the number 7 Go Daddy Chevrolet owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. This was a huge announcement when it broke the news. NASCAR's most popular driver was hiring the Go Daddy media mogul who was Danica Patrick. Both marketing departments on both the drivers side had to be ecstatic about each others partnership.
The limited races that Danica ran in 2010, were not the results of what people were expecting out of her. She straight up sucked. All the hype was for nothing. She was in some of the best equipment out there and yet she didn't finish well. ESPN would always listen to her in car radio and she had no freaking clue what the hell she was doing. She would ask Tony Jr. (her crew chief) what she needed to do cause she didn't know. I understand that she's trying to learn, but you can not expect to take some pretty face, put her in a Nationwide car, and expect her to know how to drive the car. Yes she did run a couple of ARCA races but that's not enough training to put her into a Nationwide car. What she needed to do to gain experience was start off in the ARCA cars, run some truck races, go full time in the trucks, and then go to NW, and eventually cup.
The formula for the developmental drivers that the big NASCAR teams have works. Carl Edwards is a prime example. I remember when Jack Roush put him in the Camping World Truck Series and he won there, went to Nationwide and ran some cup races, and went full time in the Cup series. But because Danica is an extremely pretty woman, she's going to be able to get whatever she wants. There are other female drivers who aren't as attractive as her that have tried to make their mark on the sports but could you name one of them? I know I can't. Maybe Jennifer Jo Cobb who's still racing but she's somewhat pretty but clearly does not have the marketability that Danica has.
Ridiculous right?
You know I'm all for presenting the best possibility in how to market a driver with a brand or product. I plan to work in public relations for a NASCAR driver or a team to accomplish that kind of marketing/public relations success. I have that kind of mentality, BUT just because Danica has the opportunities to grab any kind of sponsorship/whatever she wants she NEEDS to have the results of that success translate on the track. Performance and creditability should be what is number one on the agenda. Her results should reflect first and then comes the sponsorships and marketing deals. I admit I am a Dale Jr. fan. A fan of the one driver who hasn't performed like everyone has expected him to perform the past several years. He is the most marketable driver with not the greatest results over the past years. I became a fan of his over the years where he was winning. The best season he had was in 2004 when he won 8 races and finished 3rd in points, yet he hasn't done shit since then. So Junior and Danica have a lot in common, even though Danica's just starting out we'll see if she can start performing unlike her boss.
Honestly I don't think she will. It's gonna be all hype now and she's going to be under the watchful eye of the whole world even more than she already is. When she moves to cup, she'll be in some of the best company and equipment in the business. She'll have the directional mentorship of Tony Stewart as her boss and teammate under Hendrick power equipment. If she fails in it, it could be the last hope for a female driver to do something in NASCAR for a good while. None the less, only time will tell if this "superstar" will succeed.
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