(rulz iss rulz)
Posted on 07/13/2006 2:45:56 AM PDT by ajolympian2004
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A fellow IRL driver says Danica Patrick has what it takes to succeed if she switches to the paint-swapping world of NASCAR and she's plenty aggressive in open-wheel racing when it's ``the right time of the month.''
Ed Carpenter, who trails Patrick by four slots in the IRL IndyCar Series' points race, made the comment when asked how Patrick might handle NASCAR racing during a radio appearance to promote Saturday night's Firestone Indy 200.
``I think Danica's pretty aggressive in our cars,'' Carpenter said Wednesday on WGFX-FM in Nashville.
``I mean, you know especially if you catch her at the right time of the month, she might be trading plenty of paint out there,'' he said. ``But I think she'll hold her own. Who's she's going to drive for is hard to say. I don't think she's leaving, so we'll see.''
Carpenter later told The Associated Press he didn't mean to be disrespectful of Patrick by using a female stereotype.
He said he was trying to make the point that Patrick is competitive and already proven as a capable driver. He predicts she'll stay in the IndyCar Series.
``It's obvious when you're around her, she's very competitive,'' he said in a telephone interview afterward. ``I think she has goals that she hasn't accomplished yet in the IRL Indy cars. That's going to want to make her stay.''
Patrick, a presenter at the ESPY Awards in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, didn't take offense when informed of Carpenter's comments.
``That sounds like a good joke to me, it's pretty funny to me,'' she said backstage. ``No big deal. Ed is a really nice guy. There's no drama there. I think it's funny. I'm glad he's showing some personality.''
There has been wide speculation that Patrick will switch leagues after her IRL contract ends this season. Her father was a guest of Roush Racing at Chicagoland Speedway for the Nextel Cup race last weekend.
``It would be silly of me being my contract year not to look at all my options,'' Patrick said in Los Angeles. ``My interest level right now is not really high, it's a little there just because it's racing. The (NASCAR) schedule is sort of unfathomable.''
Carpenter, who is married, drives for a team owned by his mother and her husband, Tony George -- chief executive officer of the Indy Racing League.
Patrick, who won three poles and was rookie of the year in 2005, ranks 12th in points this year, best on the Rahal-Letterman team.
``She's kind of leading the way for her team and putting up the best results for her team. She's going to get shoved around over there just because she's a girl, but I think she's going to be able to hold her own -- if she even goes over there,'' Carpenter said.
AP Sports Writer Beth Harris in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
It might be amusing, though, at the ''right time of the month'' to watch Pretty Boy and Shawna Redux swapping paint for 28th. (If you have to ask about either of those names, stick with Dick Trickle, ya wannabe).
(rulz iss rulz)
This mad quest by NASCAR to get a woman into the series has gotten absurd. While many extremely qualified drivers can't break into the Busch or Nextel Cup Series, NASCAR's nutty new chief, Brian France, is pushing car owners to hire "minorities" which, in the world of PCers like France, apparently includes women.
This year, a girl named Erin Crocker was given a Busch ride at one of the major speedways. She crashed, taking other cars out of the race. When interviewed in the pits, she admitted that it was the first time she had ever driven a stock car competitively.
Yes, a major team owner has actually put a driver in a Busch Series car who has never competed in the minor leagues before jumping in with the big boys.
Is it any wonder that so many male drivers have a deep, underlying resentment for the "diversity" initiatives which have swept through all the sanctioning bodies of autombile racing in the United States ?
That's funny.
``That sounds like a good joke to me, it's pretty funny to me,'' she said backstage. ``No big deal. Ed is a really nice guy. There's no drama there. I think it's funny. I'm glad he's showing some personality.''
At least she has a good sense of humor.
Perhaps Patrick can get Shawna Robinson as her crew chief, eh? < /snicker >
Might be interesting to watch Patrick during several hundred laps of beatin' and bangin' at Darlington or Richmond with the likes of Stewart and the Busch boys et al. At any event, if she tries Cup racing, I'm quite willing to wager that she and the wall are going to become good, good friends.
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