The Danica Patrick 'Excuses' Thread. A refuge for haters.

My point is she sacrificed EVERYTHING, whatever it took, to climb the rungs of the ladder to get that opportunity. Just like my friend Jerry Nadeau sleeping in his rusted out diesel Oldsmobile outside shops in Charlotte trying to get a shot at a Cup ride. She prepared in very venue she went to to win. Just like my friend Jerry did in Barber Saab, beating folks like JPM, to get there.

The Motegi race was where Danica's preparation met an opportunity. She made her own luck. Good on her.

 

And on that day, she did. Game over.

 

It's not a question of can she drive as well or better than you or I. And if she can drive better than me (Which I already stated in a previous post that she could), so what. Because I can't golf as well as Tiger Woods, does that make Tiger a better golfer? Your analogy leaks like a radiator. The question is, is she as good of driver as most of her peers? And she is not. By the way, she has never finished sixth or better in any of her IRL seasons. Her teamate(s) win races and consistently finish in front of her in championship points. And let's not forget, she is in top notch equipment. So now, who's the one thinking with the little head with the little huevos?

 

So I guess none of us can comment on politics either since none of us have been President? Hell, let's just suspend the election altogether. Since none of us have ever won an Oscar, none of us can comment on what movies we don't like?

Ron, this is a ridiculous statement, even for you.

Grossly misleading statistic.

How many of those 15 men actually ran the full season last year? How many were driving top flight equipment? The only one she beat was Marco and he had 10 DNFs last season, in the races where they both finished, he beat her pretty regularly.

yeah, but you think Massa is the next Schumacher...

What was that you were syaing about credibility?

 

Lots of guys sacrifice trying to climb the ladder. How many of them ascended to a top IRL seat having NEVER WON a race in their entire career?

Would that be...none?

I watched Nadeau race, I was in the stands when he won an NHIS in Barber Saab, he got his rides in NASCAR because he deserved them.

I am sure Danica sacrificed but don't even try to argue that she got her seat on merit, she got it on looks. There has never been a driver in IRL with as weak a resume as hers ever getting a top ride.

The sad fact of the matter is that somewhere there is a kid sleeping in his car, liek Jerry Nadeau, who is more deserving of that AGR seat than Danica and that is where my criticism of her lies. All of you who think she earned her way to that seat are deluding yourself. If she wasn't a female with her looks, she would have NEVER gotten that ride. She sure didn't get it on her on-track performance.

 

You really have no frigging idea what you are talking about.

 

I find it difficult to argue with a win.

I have a daughter and, had she shown an interest in racing, I quite cheerfully would have bankrupted myself furthering her career. I'm a hypocrite and a Neanderthal: I would prefer, for reasons I find difficult to describe, not to see women compete in F1. A traditionalist? A scared little boy?

Is there any other "major" sport in which the best women could compete with the best men and win? Soccer? US stick and ball? Cycling? I love racing and have long argued with fans of other sports that racing is a physically demanding task, and that racers are true athletes. Does athleticism matter less in racing because of the enormous importance of equipment?

 

Senna, your comment about more deserving drivers flipping burgers while others race applies to many of the men as well. To me, one of racing's greatest flaws as a sport is that talent too often yields to money. I agree with your comments.

 

I thought the minimum weight included the driver for 2008. Thus no one has a weight advantage.

 

And racing isn't one of them. I take it back. Billie Jean King beat Bobby Riggs.

 

Ted, she does beat here peers. That is the point you keep overlooking, and I do not mean just last weekend. She finishes consistently in season points in the top 7, beating at 15 other all male drivers. That is a very good statistic. That deserves praise, not the BS that I read here.

Danica did not buy her way into AGR, she did the entire sleeping on garage floors in England routine. I do not believe any of us have ever driven a race at a constant 200MPH for multiple hours in competition, and it is unlikely that any of us have ever tried to kick a field goal either, that is why I will not slam the losing Dolphins, nor do I think your analogy in that respect makes any sense. She does what very few can do, and I would certainy suggest she is a much better driver than any of us.

Most importantly, this conversation would not be taking place if Dixon or Kanaan had won in Japan. Being males, they would have been considered smart drivers for conserving fuel. Danica won a race, she did not finish that race as a backmarker which if you were correct about her she would have. Obviously, you are not correct about her, she does have talent as a driver, no she will not race in F1, but she will do better than at least 75% of the males in IRL.

That's still damn good considering the drivers in front of her, Kanaan, Dixon, Helios, etc. Unless in your opinion they are also slouches? The only way your argument can stick is if you suggest that the 5 or 6 drivers that finished ahead of Danica in points in 2006 and 2007 are also not good or deserving.

I can not see any logical basis for any of the negative comments. So far none of you have provided anything substantial to prove Danica Patrick does not derserve her ride or her win. Not to forget, she was absolutely the biggest reason we still have the basis for American open wheeled racing to make a popularity come back over the next 3-4 years.

 

Your last sentence here is absolutely true and that is the only reason that I semi root for her.

 

I haven't read all the posts, but alot of them and just wanted to say about her being small is one of the reasons why it's such a hoot. When you are in one of these long grueling races, by the end your neck hurts like crazy, your arms feel like they want to fall off- it's really tiring- even for a strong guy. For a little female to be able to even get through one of these races, let alone win one is really great.
Also, about her having money- she paid her dues plenty and then some. She and her parents sacrificed. She probably feels a tremendous responsibilty to pay back her family, team and sponsors. And that's probably why the tears of relief and gratitude. Nothing wrong with that in my book.
I don't know why some people are so hostile toward Danica. It's a little creepy.

 

Yep.

Some days you may dominate the field, some days all the guys in front may take themselves out in wrecks and some days you play a strategy game and win. On the other hand some days you blow an engine while leading, some days a tire goes down, some days the fuel nozzle gets stuck and you spend 10 seconds too long in the pits, some days somebody crashes into you and takes you out etc. Drivers are graded on winning and Danica won that day, beating everyone else on the track. She is owed the respect a race winner deserves.

 

+1

Tiofosiron keeps slinging around the fact that she beats most of the men. The problem is, that he seems to ignore the quality of her car compared to a Vision, D&R, RLR, Foyt, or Panther car. Last year Dario and Tony showed what those AGR cars are capable of, and won many races and brought the championship right down to the wire. Little Andretti even managed to win a race at a tough road course in his rookie year, and I certainly don't rate him highly. Danica said herself that she moved from RLR to AGR to win races, although guys like Buddy Rice managed to win at RLR. The fact is, she SHOULD be winning races, and not just one. Last season, she wasn't getting the most out of that car, period. Now I await for stupid people to ignore my points and sling the sexist card, and the "your not an Indy driver, so you can't comment" card. I suppose there is no point for chat forums then!

 

+1000

 

+1001

btw...best car is supposed to win. and please, several posters have thrown around the phrase "great driver" when describing danica and her irl peers.

well...maybe "good or decent driver" is more appropriate to describe the field in the irl last week. there is a far higher level of talent in nascar for those of you that care to watch the taxis go round and round.

 

That is a grossly misleading statement as most of the 15 you refer to did not run the full season. And of those 15, the only running in top level equipment was Marco who suffered 10 DNFs last season. When he was on track, he was consistently faster than Danica.

The fact is that she is last among drivers running with the top teams. And the fact remains that until last Sunday, she had never won a single auto race at any level. There is NO OTHER DRIVER in indycar history who has ascended to the level of teams that she has with such a poor level of achievement. That is th e supporting FACT to my argument that you have yet to rebut.

She is CONSISTENTLY outdriven by ALL her teammates. That is an inconvenient fact that you conveniently ignore.

My beef with her is that she got to where she is on the basis of her looks and not her achievement, this is an indisputable FACT. It has nothing to do with her gender or my self-esteem. My beef with you and the rest of the Danica supporters is you consistently ignore that first fact and instead insult me or my motives. I guess when you have no rebuttal to the obvious fact, that is all you have to fall back on.

You keep making that same ridiculous statement over and over and over. What does that have to do with anything? She doesn't race you or me, she races against other drivers in the IRL.

This is without question, the most pointless and ludicrous argument made in her support.

No, the important fact is that this conversation would not be taking place had it been Sarah Fisher who won in Japan.

When I want to show my daughter a role model in motorsports, I point to someone like Sarah Fisher, who has done more with less than many other drivers in IRL, male included, and more pointedly has done far more with lesser equipment than Danica has.

Even moreso, I will point her to Angelle Sampay, who is the greatest Pro Stock motorcycle racer in NHRA history, male or female.

What I will NOT do is point her to Danica and tell her, "see honey, it doesn't matter what you can do or how good you are, the only thing you need to do to be successful is show your arse to the camera. It is all about looks and not substance".

If that is how you wish to raise your daughter and those are the values that you wish to instill in her, then good on you. I for one prefer that my daughter be raised with the notion that she can be successful in life based on who she is and what she can do, and not what she looks like. You guys seem to be comfortable with danica using her tits and arse to get her where she is...and you call me a misogynist?!? Tell me, who is really reinforcing gender stereotypes here?

 

But isn't it a spec series?

 

nascar is a spec series as well...does not seem to hold the hendrick team back from having the VERY best cars on the grid period!!

of course toyota is making some big hp but that will not last...so my foregoing statement remains true.

pcb

 

till i see you on the podium abov her you got no case

 

The most inane comment yet.

I guess until I become President, I can't venture an opinion on the election? Until I win the Masters I can't comment on Tiger Woods?

You are aware, sir, that you are on a DISCUSSION board?

 

this is not what i ment, but for someone to say she got there because of her looks and her A** and ti**s is wrong,the guy that beat Tiger Woods deserves the same respect as Tiger whe he wins,and this gos for all the sports,

 

Wrong?!?

Can you point to ONE SINGLE DRIVER--just one--who has ascended to the top teams in IndyCar without having won at least ONE race in their career?!?

To say that Danica did not get her ride based on her looks is utterly ridiculous. On what basis did she get her ride? It certainly wasn't her driving record leading up to Indycars, she never won a single auto race in her entire career. There is no, and never has been, a driver who has risen to the ranks that she has without having won at least one single race?!? Not Formula Ford, not Atlantics, not even at the club level. How could you even remotely suggest that her looks did not get her that ride?!?

You made a ridiculous statement with your first comment, and now you want to back it up with this one?!?

 

Ted, you're starting to put your foot in it now!

"Danica Patrick began go-karting in 1992 at Sugar River Raceway outside of Brodhead, Wisconsin and went on to win several WKA and IKA National Championships. She moved to England at the age of 16 in order to advance her racing career. Focusing primarily on road racing, Patrick raced in several developmental open-wheel series while in Europe, including Formula Ford and Formula Vauxhall.

Patrick earned a second-place finish in England's extremely competitive Formula Ford Festival, the highest-ever finish by either a woman or an American in the event."

Need to do your homework there, buddy!