Danica Patrick: Open-Wheel Racer Gets Caught Up in Crash at NASCAR Race; Rest of World Yawns

Danica's Debut Marred By Pile-up

IndyCar driver and commercial darling Danica Patrick made her NASCAR debut at Daytona on Saturday, moving up and down the driver rankings before getting caught up in a 12-car pileup that effectively ended her day.

NASCAR may not have much of a following across the pond from the U.S., but Patrick’s debut was marked by a full-scale coverage blitz by almost every media outlet, the equivalent of Sky Sports showing a full length story of a GP2 racer.

Sponsorships are no longer guaranteed in either NASCAR or F1 because of the economic climate, and it will be interesting to see Patrick’s progress, and whether any private F1 teams will take advantage of a similar driver to offset developmental costs next season.