Danica Patrick is one of the most popular athletes in the world and now that she is in NASCAR many have called her to return back to the Indy 500 and where she began her professional career in open car racing, but she has said that it is less likely that she will return.
She is a rookie on her first year on the Sprint Cup circuit and she has been one of the main stories of NASCAR all year and despite many calls for her to return, she has stayed focused on her current racing schedule. Patrick said she would like to give it a try, but so far the logistics would be tough. Patrick has done okay on tour since winning the pole at Daytona and leading some laps, but it has been tough for her over the past few races and many felt that she could come back and place high if she ran the Indy 500.
Patrick led laps in the Indy 500 before and she finished third in 2009 and in seven starts she finished in the top five twice and was in the top 10 six times.
"I really tried hard to do it this year and we all did on my team, and ultimately it came down to the fact that it wasn't going to help me here," said Patrick, who has one top 10 and an average finish of 26.3 in 11 Sprint Cup starts this season. "And this is what I've chosen to do now, and it's not fair to take away from it. I have a long way to go to figure this out, and I need to focus here. As the years go by and more and more distance goes between my full-time IndyCar career and now, or at that present time, it gets less and less likely."
hat bold move and aggressiveness, however, was enough to impress Foyt, who signed him for the current season.
Sato arrived from Formula One with a reputation as an aggressive driver with a penchant for wrecks but Foyt has been able to harness and channel that aggression with just a look.
"Dad has always told me it is easier to calm a hard charger than it is to prod a guy who doesn't want to charge," said Larry Foyt, A.J.'s son and Foyt Racing's team principal.
"The obvious thing is you keep wrecking A.J.'s race cars and you have to go look at him and tell him it has a pretty calming effect.
"That was kind of his reputation but once you get to know him and work with him that's not the case at all.
"He's just a super fit with our team the way he gets along with A.J., he feels like the whole team is behind him and he doesn't have to go out and extend himself."
(Reuters Quotes)
