Danica Patrick Still Flirting With NASCAR

All the speculation about Danica Patrick's future has both amused and frustrated her, she said Tuesday, a day after confirming she has re-signed a contract to stay in the IZOD IndyCar Series full-time for at least the next two years.

After months of managing rumor and playing coy, Patrick used New York City's Times Square to announce Monday that she signed a two-year deal with an option to remain with what is now Andretti Autosport in the IndyCar Series. But it's still NASCAR that everyone wants her to talk about.

Despite her new contract, Patrick has left open the door to a possible part-time foray into stock cars for the 2010 season. "I've made no mystery that I'm curious about NASCAR, '' said Patrick, the only woman to have won an IndyCar Series race. "We've been working on this and talking to people since the summer. We are serious about this. ... There's no contract and there's no deal right now, but as I said, if I could do both, I'd like to do that."

"Even if things go until the last minute, there still a little bit of time left,'' Patrick said when asked how soon she'd need to have a deal in place for February's NASCAR SpeedWeeks at Daytona International Speedway.

Her IndyCar Series team owner, Michael Andretti, said he was firmly behind Patrick's desire to run in NASCAR -- as long as the focus remains with his four-car team and her bids to win the Indianapolis 500 and to make a serious run at the IndyCar Series championship. She finished fifth in the championship last year, the top American driver.

"First and foremost, she is a race car driver, and I've been there. You always want to challenge yourself. ... I don't want to get in her way if she really wants to do that."
- Michael Andretti,
Andretti Autosport"First and foremost, she is a race car driver, and I've been there,'' Andretti said. "You always want to challenge yourself. For her to go and give it a try, I don't want to get in her way if she really wants to do that."

Andretti said there is no limit to the number of stock car races she can participate in, but the two have agreed on a realistic, working schedule.

"The focus would be to run before and after the IndyCar season, that's the best opportunity,'' Patrick said.

There was no mention Tuesday of a photo that appeared on Patrick's website briefly late Monday night, reportedly showing her in a driver's suit with logos for JR Motorsports and Chevrolet. The photo was quickly replaced although it only created more buzz that a deal is imminent for Patrick to drive for Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s team in the NASCAR's Nationwide Series.

Earnhardt has publicly said he'd be interested in having her behind the wheel of one his cars. And her new primary IndyCar sponsor, GoDaddy.com, is also one of Earnhardt's long-time sponsors.

Some news outlets reported that to be a done-deal a month ago, although the announcement never came.

"It's always funny to read what people are saying,'' Patrick said. "Sometimes they're onto something and sometimes it's completely left field. So it is entertaining.''

To Patrick's credit, she has been true to word. When she first became a "free agent" back in June, she said she wouldn't announce anything until after the season. But she also made no secret about wanting to give stock cars a go beyond using it as a bargaining ploy to gain a lucrative IndyCar contract.

"It's come up in the past to run NASCAR, and my heart wasn't there,'' Patrick said. "I didn't want to at all. I wasn't really curious. And trust me, there were financial reasons why it would have been a much better idea.

"I've always thought that the most important thing for me in my career is that I go with my gut and I go with what I want and not worry about the rest.

"And so now my curiosity is there and I'd just like to try it, and I'd like to see how I get on with the cars. I think the racing looks fun.

"Like I said, I'm curious about NASCAR, but curious doesn't mean I wanted to jump in with both feet. I still love IndyCar racing and where I'm at and the team that I'm with.''