Danica Patrick Wrecks in NASCAR Debut

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- All Danica Patrick wanted this blustery Saturday afternoon at NASCAR's most hallowed track was experience without expectation. So to that end, she may consider her NASCAR debut successful, even if her No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevy finished the day a twisted wreck and her first NASCAR finish was officially 35th place.

After driving a careful and conservative early race, Patrick was collected in a 12-car accident that sent a fourth of the field to the garage on lap 68 of the 120-lap NASCAR Nationwide Series season-opener at Daytona International Speedway.

The "story" of Speedweeks, Patrick chose to compete in the Nationwide Series race despite having only a few hours of practice in the car -- energized and encouraged instead by a sixth-place finish in a lower-level ARCA Series race last weekend.

She started 15th on Saturday, but opted for a more cautious strategy, falling back to the rear of the field to watch and learn. Unfortunately for her, the view was too good. Josh Wise and rookie Colin Braun collided several cars in front of Patrick and she was unable to dodge a track full of spinning cars.


"If they could figure out a way to have the tires not smoke so much, we'd have a lot less wrecked race cars,'' an upbeat Patrick joked after climbing out of her car.

"There was nothing I could do. The last time they crashed in front of me, I held it straight and they all went below me. This time I held it straight and they didn't.''

Patrick, the top-ranked American driver in the IZOD IndyCar Series last year, has attracted considerable attention in her entree to the NASCAR ranks with the Dale Earnhardt Jr.-owned JR Motorsports team.

Cameras have followed her every move at Daytona, reporters have analyzed her every motive. Other drivers have even started joking about the attention.

"Why are you talking to me, did Danica leave?'' joked two-time Cup champion Tony Stewart earlier this week.

Her top-10 performance in the ARCA race, however, helped her win over even many of those who doubted her initially. At the very least, it fueled the interest in her.

"I was one, I can honestly say, just by watching what she did in IndyCar, even though I knew she had a lot of talent in driving a car, (who) wasn't sure she could come here and mix it up,'' said 1999 NASCAR Cup champion Dale Jarrett, now a television analyst for ESPN television broadcasts.

"I was wrong," he added. "She did a great job but now it's on to some more intense test as she gets through this weekend.''

In the ARCA race, Patrick spun out and kept going, got a taste of green flag pit stops and even made an inspired charge from 24th to sixth in the final 20 laps.

But. ...

"She just graduated from high school -- now she's going to college,'' Jarrett said. "She's just stepping to a whole other level. She's with guys now out here racing that have a ton of experience, that are great talents, because she's going to be competing against a lot of guys that are in the Cup Series.

"That'll be her best opportunity to really learn, and that's why it's so important for her to get her car comfortable, for her team to get it comfortable for her, where she can be in the mix for the majority of the day if not all.

"Obviously finishing 300 miles would be huge for her. It's going to be eye-opening.''

While Patrick refused to reveal a specific expectation beyond just finishing, she was smiling and seemed pleased with the overall experience Saturday -- even if she was disappointed with the ending.

"It was like I had two little mini races at the beginning,'' said Patrick, who was running 26th at the time of her accident.

"I wasn't comfortable with the car and I just dropped back. ... but we made the (pit) stop, made adjustments and as you could probably see, I was feeling better about things.''

"I'm just going to take away from this that I'll know what it's like here for next year. I remember in IndyCar, when I did well at my first couple of races and people were like, 'Gosh, you should be winning win every race.' .... You have to have realistic expectations.

"Today was more of a rough day for me.''

Patrick will have a different kind of test next week at the two-mile California Speedway where she'll make the second of her 13 Nationwide starts this season -- a sporadic schedule strategically placed among her full-time IndyCar season schedule.

"That second run, I felt much better,'' Patrick said. "The car was more under control and I think we would have finished strong if we would have finished, which was my goal.

"But as you can see, it's easier said than done.''