MWR’s Ty Norris says Danica Patrick talks still in initial stages
Michael Waltrip Racing is interested in signing Danica Patrick. // Darrell Ingham, Getty Images
FONTANA, Calif. – Michael Waltrip Racing is interested in Danica Patrick and while she has a connection through her sponsor GoDaddy.com to JR Motorsports, talks with MWR have progressed to a point where the team believes it has a shot.
MWR vice president and general manager Ty Norris said Sunday he met with Patrick a couple of months ago and has talked to her people in the last week about a possible partial Nationwide program for next year. He said MWR might be able to offer her more manufacturer support, focus more on her development and also has room under the four-team Sprint Cup cap other than some of the other teams with which she has talked.
Patrick wants a car that has points so she wouldn’t have to qualify on speed, said Norris, who has talked with Patrick’s representatives in the last week. MWR’s Nationwide program has been a mix of drivers in recent years.
“In recent weeks, I would say the discussions have become a little bit more detailed and intense to where you’re talking about ifs, ands and buts,” Norris said. “When you get to that level, you try to figure out what are the next steps, if there are next steps. Any owner of a Nationwide team or a Cup team with a racing operation would love to have Danica there after you talk to her because of her passion to race.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr. said Friday his JR Motorsports team has talked with her. Roush Fenway Racing officials have said they have talked with her but the talks fizzled over what it would take financially to build a program around her. Joe Gibbs Racing President J.D. Gibbs said Sunday that it would be hard for his team to put her in a car for next year because it would likely need to be a third car.
JGR uses sports company IMG to help in its sponsorship search, and IMG also represents Patrick, who finished fifth in the 2009 IndyCar Series standings.
“She would be great for the sport,” Gibbs said. “She works with the IMG guys, who we think a lot of, too. So I think they will have a good plan there when it’s all said and done. … At this point, it would be kind of hard [for us] to do next year and do it right. That’s my biggest thing, make sure you do it right. We’ve got two great teams but probably not enough room. You would have to add another team.”
Norris said he thinks Patrick’s people are still in an information-gathering stage and not a negotiation stage. He said part of the talks have revolved around what her progression plan would be and what to do if she doesn’t enjoy it, which could result in a team making an investment in a development program that doesn’t go too far.
“[Salary] hasn’t even been part of the conversation,” Norris said. “It’s been [about] how you can get her track time, who is going to be the driver coaches, who is going to be involved, can you work around the open-wheel schedule, will you have a car with points.”
