Archives for January 2010

Danica Patrick has finalized her 2010 Nationwide auto racing schedule, starting Feb. 20 with the Statler Bros. 300 at Fontana, Calif.

The IndyCar driver will compete in 12 Nationwide races for JR Motorsports, which is owned by the popular Dale Earnhardt Jr

"Like I've said before, we just want to be smart and calculative about this process," Patrick said at news conference Thursday. "

The tracks we've selected not only compliment the IndyCar schedule, but will give me quality seat time at a variety of facilities."

She is undecided about driving in the Sprint Cup's Super Bowl of racing, the Daytona 500, Feb. 14 at Daytona Beach. Patrick's IndyCar schedule with Andretti Autosport begins March 14 with the Sao Paulo (Brazil) Indy 300.

After the Sam's Town 300 at Las Vegas, her full-time IndyCar schedule will keep her way from Nationwide competition until the New England 200 June 26 at Loudon, N.H.

Danica Mania is coming to a racetrack near you. IndyCar open-wheel racing star Danica Patrick plans to run in the NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Gateway International Raceway on Oct. 23.

Patrick is driving in NASCAR for the first time this year in a limited number of events for JR Motorsports. A 12-race Nationwide schedule for.

Patrick was announced Thursday, although her first race has not been determined. It might be at Daytona in two weeks, or the week after in Fontana, Calif.

"Like I've said before, we just want to be smart and calculative about this process," Patrick said in a release. "

The tracks we've selected not only complement the IndyCar schedule, but will give me quality seat time at a variety of facilities.''

Patrick, 27 and a winner in the IndyCar Series, is a native of Roscoe, Ill. She will not drive in the Truck Series/Nationwide Series doubleheader at Gateway on July 16-17 because the IndyCar series is in Toronto.

"Being able to cap off our season by showcasing one of the biggest names in our sport can only be a positive for us and for the racing community in the area," GIR general manager Terry Harmeson said in the release.

Teaser videos on the site show Patrick dressed as Marilyn Monroe in the famous skirt-blowing-up scene from The Seven-Year Itch and imitating Jennifer Beals in the "shower dance" routine from Flashdance, among others.

Two of three earlier "Internet only" video ads posted on the site, titled "Baseball," "Speeding" and "Shower," also star Patrick. The widely viewed "Speeding" video shows a close encounter between Patrick and a female cop who stops her car, then gives an enthusiastic audition for a GoDaddy ad. The "Shower" ad actually has a humorous ending to go with the suggestiveness.

The IndyCar star's deal at JR Motorsports brought in sponsorship dollars that saved about a dozen jobs and helped the organization remain a two-car Nationwide Series team with.

The No. 5 and No. 88 Chevrolet running full seasons. As a company that knows the value of celebrity and knows how to market it, her progress might well align with JR Motorsports progress.

It would make perfect sense for Dale Earnhardt Jr. the owner and Patrick the driver to rise to Cup racing together.

"You win one race, you want the next one; it's like a drug," Earnhardt said. "…Once you get a taste of success, you want more of it.

You need more success to match that feeling of the first success. You just gotta keep doubling the doses.

"Eventually we have to take our program to Cup to get that enjoyment and exhilaration out of the success part."

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The Super Bowl, which apparently is some sort of sporting event on Feb. 7, is a unique media happening: a moment when the nation comes together to adjudicate the meaning of advertising and to ratify its absurd, over-scaled importance in our culture.

Yes, advertising has multiplexed and gone online, become socialized, product-integrated and user-generated. But the Super Bowl still creates the biggest single audience of the year.

How advertisers choose to speak to that audience is the nearest thing we have to an instant cultural personality test. Don't look now, U.S.A., but you've been profiled.

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In their two Super Bowl spots, Patrick recreates iconic movie roles. She does a raven-haired Marilyn from "The Seven Year Itch," a crop-top-sporting Kelly LeBrock from "Weird Science" and a wet-n-wild Jennifer Beals from "Flashdance."

What do you think? Does it make you want to visit GoDaddy.com? How about the fact that "unrated" footage is available on their website? Does that sweeten the deal?

Indy car diva Danica Patrick, who at 27 is the most accomplished female Indy car driver ever, is poised to branch out into stock cars. Part of a dream team,  Patrick is creating a media and fan frenzy. The only female to win an Indy car race, Patrick takes what could be the first step in what could lead to a NASCAR career on February 6 at Daytona International Speedway.

That’s kickoff day for 2010 Speedweeks, culminating with the NASCAR’s Daytona 500 on Valentine’s Day.
 She’ll drive a JR Motorsports, Go Daddy Chevy in the ARCA stock car series Lucas Oil 200 at Daytona.
 Among other things, the ARCA series is a launch pad to NASCAR.

Patrick, a marketing tornado with big time name recognition in and out of motorsports, and JR aren’t some start up, low budget operation.  JR is co-owned by NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.  Like Patrick in the IRL IndyCar Series, Junior generates the most income of any driver in his series.

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Danica Patrick's new team, JR Motorsports, is only going to have two cars going for the Feb. 13 Nationwide race at Daytona International Speedway.

The team isn't committing to Patrick to be in the No. 7 car, according to SceneDaily. The team will apparently judge her on how she drives at the Feb. 7 Automobile Racing Club of America event.

The only sure thing for Daytona on Feb. 13 when it comes to JR Motorsports is that Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be behind the wheel of one of the two cars, No. 88, which is sponsored by Helllman's.

If Patrick isn't chosen to run the race, that leaves the team with Kelly Bires, who is the main driver of the Hellman's car this season, and Mark Martin to choose from.

You can bet JR Motorsports would like Patrick to do well in California. To have Patrick and Earnhardt driving at Daytona would be great exposure for the team.

The decision to put Patrick in the No. 7 Chevrolet for the Nationwide Series season opener will likely come based on how she performs in the ARCA race at Daytona on February 7.

If Patrick doesn't meet expectations then JR Motorsports could put Mark Martin or Kelly Bires in the team's car for the Camping World 300.

Not surprisingly, one recurring question at the annual NASCAR Media Tour sponsored by Charlotte Motor Speedway is: How do you think Danica Patrick will do in stock cars?

A little over a week ago, former driver turned TV analyst Kyle Petty warned that Patrick’s chances of success are not great, considering she has had less on-track success than other open-wheel drivers who have attempted and struggled in making the transition to NASCAR.

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