USA TODAY International Edition
Patrick seems at peace with uncertain future
WATKINS GLEN, N. Y. Amid one of the most productive stretches of her NASCAR career, Danica Patrick faces the possibility that it could all end after this season because of sponsorship shortfalls. Or at least end at Stewart- Haas Racing.
In an interview Saturday with USA TODAY Sports at Watkins Glen International, she seemed at peace with the prospect.
Various outlets have reported that SHR had begun negotiations with Patrick to extricate itself from the final year of her contract, but the situation isn’t even that complex, Patrick said.
“There’s no buyout needed,” she said. “I don’t have a sponsor. It’s contingent on the sponsor.”
As recently as three years ago, that would have been an unthinkable prospect for Patrick.
She was backed by online domain name registrar GoDaddy from 2007 with Andretti Autosport in the Verizon IndyCar series to 2015 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series with SHR, helping mainstream her as a crossover media and marketing power. But GoDaddy ended racing sponsorships, citing changing business objectives.
Patrick acquired fig bar purveyor Nature’s Bakery as a primary sponsor beginning in 2016, but the company sought to terminate the last two years of the deal in January. SHR filed a $ 31 million breach- of- contract suit, but a settlement was reached in which the company served as a primary for Patrick and Clint Bowyer twice each to end the season.
Nature’s Bakery was to sponsor 25 of 36 points races for Patrick this season but had the option to sell as many as five. Several of Patrick’s partial sponsors, including Aspen Dental, increased their commitments after the departure of Nature’s Bakery.
By finishing 15th at Kentucky Speedway, 13th at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, 11th at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and 15th at Pocono Raceway, Patrick has four consecutive top- 15s for the first time.
Patrick, who enters Watkins Glen 28th in the driver standings, posted a 10th- place finish at Dover International Speedway earlier this season, her first top- 10 since finishing ninth at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2015.
“I’ve always been very fortu- nate from a sponsor perspective,” Patrick said. “Even when my last ( sponsor negotiation) came around, I didn’t have to wait too long, in the summer, to know it was going to happen next.
“I would say mentally, emotionally, my approach has been peaceful and what will be will ( be), and I don’t know. ... I’m just kind of letting it organically flow.”
Patrick’s business team is “looking really hard,” she said, and believes SHR is also.
“The most important thing I can do is do well out on the track and stay positive and be in a good mood,” she said. “But I know there’s a lot of work behind the scenes, though.”
Patrick said she would consider racing for another team. She would not, she said, consider a part- time ride.
Her sponsor woes are not unique at SHR. Though Kevin Harvick, who is third in points, is fully funded, backing has been pieced together for Bowyer, and the team last week opted not to renew the option on Kurt Busch, though it hopes to sign him to a new deal.
Patrick said she wasn’t sure where she ranked among SHR’s priorities.
“I think that as a team would go, we are struggling for sponsor- ship,” she said. “I don’t know where I fall in the grand scheme, but I have been fully- fully funded since I arrived with 10 races in 2012 and even the day that I lost my primary sponsor, I still didn’t have the least amount of sponsored races of anyone on the team. I still wasn’t in that position, and then we had partners step up.
“( I’m) still pretty ( well-) funded this season considering the situation that occurred. I know Kurt’s had a lot of races funded, but he’s also been helped by ( owner Gene Haas) a lot, too, and Haas Automation. Clint doesn’t have a lot of races sold, so yeah, as a team would go, it’s not a highly funded overall amount of races for four cars.”
SHR executive Joe Custer said the team does not discuss contract negotiations but said the team plans to field four Cup cars in 2018, with Busch in one of them.
Whatever happens, Patrick said, she’s fine after working on her “emotional, mental side” in recent years.
“Yeah. I’m getting old and Zen. I am,” the 35- year- old said. “And I’ve also said, too, for the last year or two, but for sure the last year that I don’t have fun running 25th. And I know it’s been getting better lately, and there’s been a lot of the year we should have been in the top 15 a lot. So, unless I feel like I’m going to be in a scenario where that’s the case, then I just don’t care. I’d just rather not.
“I have a lot of great things going on. I have a lot of amazing opportunities out there. Life is too short to be miserable. Like, half of the Zen is, you know what, unless I feel like I have a chance to go out there and be very competitive and have a chance to win and run in the top 15 or 10 every week, then I have no interest in going out there and just participating. Never have.”