Danica Patrick to Sportscar Team Ownership ?

[Bob Baldwin]

I have a relative that works at Bristol Motor Speedway during major events

I have NO reason to doubt him But as far as I know NOTHING is confirmed

He was able to get 2 minutes of her time and asked what her plans were after her Cup driving days were over ?

Somewhat Para=Phrasing here as I was not there " In all her racing history from Karts to Present in Various series she always enjoyed Road Racing . She mentioned her and her Advisors are Discussing IMSA GT 3 team ownership . She did not mention who her advisers were

Asked if she would be competing her answer was " At this time we are only discussing Potential Ownership of a team . But if it all worked out she might consider a part time drive in the big 4 endurance races .

I know nothing about her financial position by that I assume some how that she has ruled out DPI , P-2 , and GTLM Just a guess on my part .

I am guessing here that YES she has name recognition ! Driver results not so much . But I would further assume her or her advisors must feel that getting sponsorship to go first class in GT3 would not be a problem

Should this all come to Fruition I am guessing the Powers that be in Daytona Beach would allow her to bow over and kiss their ring

Somewhat surprised at her choice of class but I am guessing she may be looking at the Cheapest class with maximum return on investment if even such a thing exists . I highly doubt that is even possible

Lastly comparing Percieved budgets to perform I would think that GTLM would be almost double the seasonal costs of GTD / GT 3 Am I close on that ?

[MoMedic9019]

Hopefully she'd be a better owner than driver. She was pretty bad in the handful of stints she had back in the day.

I'm guessing that if she's already considering this, her NASCAR career is likely on its end.

[canamman]

That would make sense for her. Sportscar would
definitely benefit in an uptick in attendance.
Hope it happens sooner than later. The Nascar
career has pretty much peaked and unfortunately
has gotten as good as its going to get short of
a Buescher type fluke win.

[Bob Baldwin]

Originally Posted by canamman

That would make sense for her. Sportscar would
definitely benefit in an uptick in attendance.
Hope it happens sooner than later. The Nascar
career has pretty much peaked and unfortunately
has gotten as good as its going to get short of
a Buescher type fluke win.

You may be right on the Slight uptick in attendence just not sure of the draw she has .
I don't know anything about her lifestyle or her financial status , None of my business any way . From what I have read Her family were middle class workers that were Not heavy on Cash yet she somehow found a way to get to Europe and run some lower formula class races .
She may have very well peaked on the performance side of things . All I am saying was if she were a guy strictly based on results most any team would have dropped the driver a while ago .
Only a guess on my part but I am thinking she must be a pretty good business person . It has been said she Markets herself quite well which I guess WHEN the NASCAR deal ends will be helpfull in launching a sportscar team and securing sponsorship for such
Would not surprise me if 10 years from now on this forum people will be asking on the What ever happened to topic Danica Patrick .?
Would you think she might put a younger woman in her ride ?

[broadrun96]

Originally Posted by Bob Baldwin

Would you think she might put a younger woman in her ride ?

That would not at all surprise me as she is astute enough to know the selling power of a good female driver to some companies with slightly tighter purse strings. And I think she would return the favor of helping another move up through the ranks and get her chance to drive. But then she can have her petulant moments on the radio so who knows, a personality clash with the box can make those exchanges seem worse than they are from the outside though.

[Bob Baldwin]

Not sure if I agree with you on this . I say that from a few years back PRE " Danica " there was a gal in NASCAR I am thinking Shawna Robinson ? that had worked her way up to the cup level and even with help from NASCAR Marketing just could not get the sponsorship to carry her through the full season .

[10TENTHS]

Hmm, interesting possibility considering where she started out (that one ALMS race in 2003).

[Bob Baldwin]

Sorry I don't recall that event .

Still confused of her choice of class GT 3 Perhaps the budgets of DPI or P2 are higher than she wants to invest ?

Also don't know if she has a following on the International Motorsports scene or not . If she did and the numbers were right why not GTLM ? with the potential to perhaps get a LM invite ?

[canamman]

Originally Posted by Bob Baldwin

You may be right on the Slight uptick in attendence just not sure of the draw she has .

I don't know anything about her lifestyle or her financial status , None of my business any way .

Would not surprise me if 10 years from now on this forum people will be asking on the What ever happened to topic Danica Patrick .?
Would you think she might put a younger woman in her ride ?

She is #2 in popularity behind Jr. in NASCAR. Whether she is on pit road
or walking through the paddock, she always has a crowd around her.

She has been in $millions long enough by now to know how to handle it.

I don't think she would go out of her way to put a female
in the seat for diversification only.

I always wished Lynn St James was in the sport longer as far as
team mgt goes. I guess she had enough of the grind.

[Rodger Davies]

Originally Posted by Bob Baldwin

Sorry I don't recall that event .

Still confused of her choice of class GT 3 Perhaps the budgets of DPI or P2 are higher than she wants to invest ?

Also don't know if she has a following on the International Motorsports scene or not . If she did and the numbers were right why not GTLM ? with the potential to perhaps get a LM invite ?

GTLM you have to compete with factories, it's not something a private team would find easy. The only way that would make sense is doing GTAm in the WEC.

GT3 cars are not only half the price, they also have excellent resale value at the moment due to the number of places they can race.

This would be great to see, either setting up a new team or just having an involvement with an existing one.

[Speed-King]

Isn't "IMSA GT3" the Porsche Cup series?

[Number4]

Originally Posted by Bob Baldwin

You may be right on the Slight uptick in attendence just not sure of the draw she has .
I don't know anything about her lifestyle or her financial status.

Danica is the fourth highest paid female sports person in the world, after Serena, Maria and Caroline the tennis players . Probably soon to be third this year considering Maria's naughty drug habit. She has been earning over $14 million a year since coming to NASCAR Cup four years ago. She is so popular she was in the half time Super Bowl adverts.
She could easily afford her own race team, but there would be a queue around the block of companies wanting to sponsor her before it came to that.

[Bob Baldwin]

Number 4 : I kind of assumed she was doing OK when you look at the percieved racing salary , Product endorsements and her Non Racing sources of income .

Certainly at this stage of her life I would be guessing she could just walk away from it all enjoy life and be happy

To do a full season GT 3 first class are you not looking at about a 4-5 million dollar budget ?

Where as others on this forum have mentioned that Guys like Roger Penske are NOT interested in Class wins Only overall Victories I wonder how that would all play out in her decision moving forward .?

Does she have any inclination to participate on an International Basis such as WEC ?
or at LM ?

Would there be any pressure from Daytona for her to consider the DPI or P-2 Class ?

We are slowly getting close to the time that the pieces of this puzzel must start lining up if there is to be any activity for the start of the 2017 season . For IMSA , the Track owners , Promoters , the Fans I see only Positives out of this .

[Number4]

Originally Posted by Bob Baldwin

Number 4 : I kind of assumed she was doing OK when you look at the percieved racing salary , Product endorsements and her Non Racing sources of income .

Certainly at this stage of her life I would be guessing she could just walk away from it all enjoy life and be happy

To do a full season GT 3 first class are you not looking at about a 4-5 million dollar budget ?

Where as others on this forum have mentioned that Guys like Roger Penske are NOT interested in Class wins Only overall Victories I wonder how that would all play out in her decision moving forward .?

Does she have any inclination to participate on an International Basis such as WEC ?
or at LM ?

Would there be any pressure from Daytona for her to consider the DPI or P-2 Class ?

We are slowly getting close to the time that the pieces of this puzzel must start lining up if there is to be any activity for the start of the 2017 season . For IMSA , the Track owners , Promoters , the Fans I see only Positives out of this .

I can't see her out of NASCAR before 2020. She is on too good a wicket.
She won't get drives on merit, but she brings the bucks, so who knows what drives she will get offered?
Danica could start a race team, deduct it from her tax, and not notice the difference.
She has 1 win from her last 318 starts so this is obviously not too high on her agenda.

[jjvincent]

Danica is not going to invest her own money into this new GT3 team. Her name will bring big name sponsors and they will fund it. She will have some investors that will do the initial cash infusion to get it started. Along with that whatever manufacturer comes with this team will be giving this team 100% of their coverage also.

This is how McDreamy brought all of those big name sponsors and why be became the official face of Mazda and then Porsche. We see how all of that worked out for him and all the rest of the Hollywood clan that decides to use their name to go racing.

Maybe Bill Cosby could throw all of his money back into Willy T. Ribbs (like he did in the T/A days) right now because the lawyers are going to suck him dry pretty soon. The Cosby/Ribbs Acura NSX in IMSA or PWC would be a good addition.

Isn't "Coach" still alive?

With car loan industry becoming the new mortgage crisis in a few years, they would be perfect for funding a race team right now.

[DeezPutz]

Originally Posted by jjvincent

Maybe Bill Cosby could throw all of his money back into Willy T. Ribbs (like he did in the T/A days) right now because the lawyers are going to suck him dry pretty soon.

That's what happens when you rape four dozen women.

[jjvincent]

Originally Posted by DeezPutz

That's what happens when you rape four dozen women.

Honestly, if that team would be put together, there would be 40 top notch drivers waiting for a seat and 150 crew looking for a job. In racing, nobody cares who you are and will forgive you of any crime because you are "investing" in the sport of racing and that's good. Cash flow = Best racer ever.

[Coach Ep]

Originally Posted by jjvincent

Isn't "Coach" still alive?

I'm right here!

[Bob Baldwin]

Originally Posted by Coach Ep

I'm right here!

Coach Ep : Glad to here you are still kicking

I think the mysterious coach they were talking about was actor : Craig T. Nelson who played Coach on a TV series .

Not sure if he is doing any racing these days or not .

Funniest " STAR " I ever met was Tim Allen at Daytona actually a very approachable guy .
I don't remember the year but I am quite sure he was driving a Saleen ?

[Mosport Fan]

Craig T used to have that 'Screaming Eagles' racing.....but not sure if he does any longer.

Tim Allen jointly owned a race team with Steve Saleen (Saleen Allen Speedlabs), and did drive Saleen Mustangs on occasion.

[Rcz]

I think she's a good driver, just not a good stock car one. I think she would do pretty good at either Protoypes or GT cars.

[jjvincent]

As for Coach, I found one of those really in depth articles that seem to be all the rage today, "the 10 questions":

Here's what Coach had to say:

Q: You have a lot invested in your Screaming Eagles racing team, both monetarily and personally. What are your goals in motorsports?

A: We’ve got to have a podium [first, second, or third place] finish this year, and we’ve got to have a reliable car. But also to make it profitable if I can, or even a break-even situation. To be able to get that podium and the five-dollar trophy, that’s real important to us.

http://www.motortrend.com/news/craig...son-interview/

[owrforever]

Danica has achieved her "Peter Principle," she's missing the "chops," now nothing more than a NASCAR water carrier. Hope she leaves while retaining some dignity, hate to see her relegated to being a field filler. The novelty of being a woman in a man's sport has worn off. Biological clock is also ticking, racing while being pregnant is probably not a good thing! Having a family changes life's perspective.
Paul Newman and David Letterman seemed successful as entertainment industry celebs that participated in Indycar. What's the old cliche', the way to make a small fortune in auto racing is to start out with a large one! Old Shelby was the master of using "other people's money" (OPM) to leverage success, Penske didn't do too bad, either!

[Matt]

Originally Posted by Bob Baldwin

Coach Ep : Glad to here you are still kicking

I think the mysterious coach they were talking about was actor : Craig T. Nelson who played Coach on a TV series .

[Bob Baldwin]

owrforever :Y ou raise some interesting points . Ultimately it is her call. .

The biggest question would be : Who wins : Danica the Person or Danica the BRAND ?

She is the one to make that call . OR find a balance between the 2 choices .Can't think of any PRO driver actively driving who owns or has a stake in another race series .

Within the world of NASCAR you do have a few JR Motorsports , Kyle Busch Motorsports , Kevin Harvick Motorsports that occasionally race in the lesser series or through their main team affiliation put a development driver in for 1 off races .

I am trying to guess if she chooses the Danica Brand option moving forward IF the better option for her might just be the P-2 class such as what Ben Keating just did in the class that carries an Automatic LM Invite through the Jim Trueman Program ?

Certainly a lot of Optiond are open to her