Dale Earnhardt Jr. optimistic about Danica Patrick’s chances for success in NASCAR
JR Motorsports' Danica Patrick (left) stands next to owner/driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. during a press conference Thursday at the team's shop in Mooresville, N.C. // David Griffin, NASCAR Scene
Related stories: Danica Patrick to attempt Nationwide races at California, Las Vegas
MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. sat patiently and looked over the group of reporters and the 15 television cameras that filled the floor of his JR Motorsports shop.
Perhaps for one of the rare times in Earnhardt Jr.’s life, the majority of the questions were directed at another NASCAR driver instead of him.
Such is life when Danica Patrick joins your race team, a figure who transcends motorsports and is making a foray into NASCAR for the first time.
“I didn’t get too many questions up there,” Earnhardt Jr. observed afterward.
Not that the sport’s most popular driver was complaining. Earnhardt Jr. heralded Patrick’s arrival – she will drive in up to 13 Nationwide Series races for the JR Motorsports team he co-owns next season – as a banner day for his team.
“Our company needs this. Our company wants this,” he said. “Bringing in Danica was a no-brainer for us. I was hoping we would have that opportunity because it’s such a strong hit for your program.”
Earnhardt Jr. was in an upbeat mood after the press conference, detailing Patrick’s attitude and successful test in Orlando as reasons for optimism that the IndyCar Series driver can exceed expectations.
“What I like about Danica is, she’s got confidence about herself, she knows what her realistic chances are,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “She seems to have a good grip on reality and what’s happening around her. Nothing weird comes out of her mouth; she doesn’t say anything that makes you take a second look.
“She seems to sort of understand this situation and what the magnitude of this is for her. It’ll be a hell of a challenge.”
While JR Motorsports part-owners Kelley Earnhardt and Tony Eury Jr. (also Patrick’s crew chief) said top-15 finishes would be realistic goals for Patrick, Earnhardt Jr. said just running up front would be satisfactory.
“If she ever battles for the lead at any point in the race – legitimately – I would be thrilled; not staying out on old tires or anything like that to lead a lap or two and then shuffling to the back,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “If she realistically is running in the top five at any point in any race, I’m going to be thrilled. Those are the first initial signs of someone’s ability to perform in this machine.”
And according to both Eury Jr. and his father, Tony Eury Sr., who was present at Patrick’s recent Orlando test, Patrick has already shown more ability than they expected.
Earnhardt Jr., anxious for an honest assessment of Patrick’s performance, called Eury Sr. after the test and was encouraged by what he heard.
“Everyone was wondering how big the learning curve was,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “[Eury Sr.] was blown away. So I was pretty happy to hear all that.
“We know she has driving talent, and she has the understanding of speed. She’ll have to do a lot of lifting [out of the gas] and throttle control and things like that, and that’s what they really saw at Orlando that impressed them so much. So our expectations may have rose a little bit from where we were initially.”
Earnhardt Jr. said Patrick’s “best friend” in the transition process is the understanding that JR Motorsports and Eury Jr. are providing her good cars. Knowing that she’ll have good-handling cars that are comfortable, have grip and a good feel right away is a unique opportunity for a newcomer, he said.
“One of the tough parts about driving a stock car is, if you’ve never had a good-handling car, you don’t know what you’re looking for – the feel and things like that,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “She’ll have that right out of the box. She won’t have to question or doubt or lose confidence in the equipment.”
Patrick is certain to go through rough patches and difficult races, Earnhardt Jr. said. But he said Patrick should be able to progress quickly based on her skill level and the chance to start immediately with a good team.
“She’s going to have struggles,” he said. “She’ll have adversities. Everyone makes mistakes. She’ll be learning the whole time, and, hopefully, she picks it up pretty fast. She didn’t get to where she was today without being able to progress and understand and learn with each step, and I think she’ll be able to do that in our cars.”
