This week NASCAR’s at Langley Speedway in Hampton, Virginia for the annual Drive for Diversity Combine. The event brings together some of motorsports best young female and minority drivers to compete for a small number of spots in NASCAR’s D4D program. This year the class includes 26 drivers from 10 states, Mexico and Puerto Rico.
The drivers, according to NASCAR:
“will be evaluated by a select committee on multiple fronts including on-track performance, marketing and media aptitude, physical fitness and personality.”
The ultimate goal for the drivers is of course a ride, in this case for the NASCAR backed Revolution Racing, while for NASCAR it’s to attract more minority and female drivers and fans.
This season the program has been among the most successful with prospects Sergio Pena and Darrell Wallace Jr. winning a combined six Pro Series races. It’s the most NASCAR wins of any D4D class to date.
Even with the success, NASCAR is now finding the limits of the program. Pena and Wallace, both in their sophomore year of the program, are reaching the end of what they can do in the series. Both are conceivably ready for opportunities in ARCA or the Nationwide or Truck Series but with a stagnant sponsorship market and shrinking teams, finding a ride independent of NASCAR is no easy feat.
Continuing as it is under the direction of Max Siegel and John Story at Revolution Racing, the D4D program is… what it is. It’s true that it’s a great opportunity to identify and cultivate talent. But if there is nowhere for these drivers to go once they’ve grown out of the program, has it really been successful? Has it really accomplished anything?
It was a step in the right direction when NASCAR put more resources and more emphasis into the program a couple of years ago. It had, up until then, been pointless. Even now though, after eight years, the program has yet to produce a regular competitor in a national series.
Still, I think it more important than ever for the sport find ways to build diverse audiences and fields. I’m just not sure, even with the added emphasis and added resources, the current model is going to work.
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Danica Patrick officially announced Thursday she would make a full-time move to NASCAR beginning in 2012. The move puts her in a Nationwide Series car for JR Motorsports for the whole of the season and select Cup races with Stewart Haas. She’ll She may make her Cup debut at next year’s Daytona 500. The announcement ended years of speculation about the driver who has made a name for herself on and off the track.
Patrick’s career has spanned much of the last two decades and has included stints in everything from go-karts to stock cars. While she’s certainly been competitive in everything she’s done, the mystique of Danica has been much more about her packaging than her talent. From racy GoDaddy.com commercials, to spreads in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition, it’s no wonder Patrick has been accused of exploiting her looks to get ahead.
After saying he respected her for not letting “boyfriends” or wanting to start a family get in the way of her pursuing a racing career, Brad Keselowski tweeted today:
“Essentially she has opened a pandoras box for all female racers. If she doesn’t succeed, no female will get a chance for years to come.”
This assumption that Patrick’s singular ascension to the heights of NASCAR and whether or not she has success is somehow the determining factor for other female drivers is laughably absurd.
Danica Patrick, of course, no more represents all female race car drivers than Brad Keselowski represents males.
Keselowski in prior tweets criticized Patrick’s choice of self-promotion, saying it:
only serves to undermine the future credibility of female racers who wish to make it based on skill, mental toughness and a never give up attitude. That to me is wrong.
It is incredibly unfair to suggest Patrick does not have “skill”, “mental toughness” or a “never give up attitude” all because she is occasionally seen in a bikini.
I don’t mean to just call out Keselowski’s comments (though he did make himself an easy target) because these thoughts are not just isolated to him – we’ve heard them from a lot of people over the years. His thoughts though are representative of a shortsighted belief and point to the hypocrisy of the society we live in.
We want female athletes who are talented and winners, but we want them to be attractive and marketable (how does an attractive, young female athlete market herself today? See Lindsey Vonn, Hope Solo and Danica Patrick). Yet when these women get ahead and take advantage of their good genes, they’re chastised. They’re damned if they use what they have and they’re damned if they don’t.
Patrick, like her contemporaries, is simply using her assets to get the resources she needs to do what she wants.
To be fair, I don’t think what she has done from the business side, is any different than Keselowski getting a makeover to make him a little more camera friendly, or any number of funded drivers using their family’s resources to find a ride. They’re all playing the game.
And I can’t fault anyone for that.
Patrick’s decision to come to NASCAR full-time should provide an interesting storyline and dynamic in 2012. Looks or no looks, I’m interested to see what the race car driver is capable of with the right resources and time. At the end of the day, that’s where our focus should be.
Now that the future at Roush Fenway is becoming more clear, we can begin to look at the other RFR drivers awaiting their fates. If the #99 seat was vacated, it was assumed that Trevor Bayne or Ricky Stenhouse Jr. would be in line to fill it. But since that now won’t happen, Bayne and Stenhouse’s futures are unclear. USA Today’s Nate Ryan wrote yesterday that Bayne expects to run a similar schedule next season as he ran in 2011. And Stenhouse told ESPN’s David Newton that there is no current definitive plan for him next season, but that he’d like to run another full NNS schedule and possibly Cup races for Richard Petty Motorsports (which has room to expand). With these two young drivers in the pipeline, RFR looks to be in a good position. But the situation begs the question, who’s the better Cup prospect?
Looking over their young careers, the two drivers have very similar statistics. Stenhouse’s NNS numbers (two wins and more top five and top ten finishes) are a tick better than Bayne’s, but both of their average finishes are right near 16. Stenhouse only has one Cup start (11th at Charlotte) versus Bayne’s 12 starts. But outside of his Daytona 500 win, Bayne’s best finish is a 16th at Michigan. In a close decision, advantage Stenhouse in the performance department.
In saying that however, I think it’s important to point out that Bayne missed time this season due to illness, and he’s in his first season with crew chief Chris Andrews. Both have played a factor in his performance this season. Stenhouse on the other hand has had significantly more time with veteran crew chief Mike Kelley.
Being successful and having a long career at the Cup level isn’t just about performance though. Marketability is becoming ever more important in the era of tough to get sponsorship dollars. Bayne has a clear advantage over Stenhouse in this area. An emotional win in the famous #21 at the Daytona 500, the media opportunities that followed, and Bayne’s personality all contribute. Stenhouse isn’t as well known despite his success, and he isn’t anywhere near the fan favorite Bayne is. During driver introductions, Bayne’s cheers rival that of perennial most popular driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.
All things considered, I think it’s very difficult to say one driver has more potential than the other. They both have long, successful careers ahead of them. I’m curious though, if you were a team owner with one open Cup ride, who would you pick?
I get it. Kimi Raikkonen is a Formula 1 champion and believes he should be racing with NASCAR’s best. If there is one thing race drivers are often not short on, it’s confidence in their ability. It’s commendable that he wants to move up as quickly as possible, but if Raikkonen really wants to succeed, he needs to slow down. One Truck Series test coupled with a 15th place finish in a truck race does not qualify one for the Nationwide Series. And at this pace, when is he expecting to make a Cup attempt? Kansas?
You certainly would have hoped that Raikkonen and his advisers did a little research before they started writing checks. There are numerous examples over the last several years of other open wheel drivers thinking they can make a NASCAR career happen, only to find out that driving in circles isn’t as easy as it looks. Jacques Villeneuve, Scott Speed, Dario Franchitti, and Patrick Carpentier are all examples of of guys who’ve come and gone. And it could be argued that all were brought along too quickly. Juan Pablo Montoya and AJ Allmendinger experienced similarly quick paths to NASCAR, but it took both several years to be able to run well, consistently. Hopefully Raikkonen isn’t on his way to being the next flame out.
It’s ridiculous to think that a guy like Raikkonen would be able to come in and immediately be competitive against guys who’ve been on circle tracks their entire lives. I’m fully aware of Raikkonen’s pedigree, and his immense talent behind the wheel, but it takes a completely different skill set to be successful in a stock car. Not only that, but it would appear the young Fin isn’t even aware of NASCAR’s rules. Crew chief Rick Ren had to explain the “lucky dog” rule to him mid-race last Friday night.
I don’t want this post to come off as me hatin’ on Kimi. Worldwide interest is great for the sport, and drivers like Raikkonen open up NASCAR to new fans. I think it also helps NASCAR when guys from around the world want to come race here. It does nothing but add to NASCAR’s legitimacy. And how cool would it be to see a guy put a Cup Series championship on his resume next to his F1 title? Raikkonen could be the first. But it won’t happen if his development is rushed.
A few years back I heard a story about an open wheel driver I won’t name. In an early test session in his career, this driver supposedly told his guys over the radio that stock car racing was “child’s play.” Needless to say, he would find out later that this wasn’t the case. Hopefully Raikkonen isn’t under a similar delusion. He’s got plenty of talent and the resources to be here for a long time, but Kimi just needs to give himself the chance to learn how to be successful.
There is an argument made by some about the current state of the Nationwide Series that I will never understand. It’s this idea that somehow NASCAR and the tracks benefit by having more Cup drivers in the NNS fields. The belief is that more fans will buy a Saturday ticket if Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick, and many others are in the field. I’ve never seen any actual data or evidence to back this idea up, and until I do, I’m going to call BS. If you want to see Cup drivers, you buy a Cup ticket. If you want to see NNS drivers, you buy an NNS ticket. If you want to see the Trucks, you buy a Truck ticket. Isn’t that the whole reason we have three different series?
Sirius and MRN’s Dave Moody had a blog post up today about how the points changes for this season have had their intended affect. We currently have a tight battle in the standings among the NNS regulars, and we still have the Cup drivers racing and winning (which is supposedly what ticket sellers want). He also notes that some of these NNS regulars are getting more attention than they have previously. After reading through his piece, I have to say that I would tend to agree with most of his points.
But while I’m not totally against Cup drivers driving in lower series, I do feel that they shouldn’t necessarily be allowed to do it full time. While they may or may not sell more tickets, I think they make it easier for the teams to track down sponsorship dollars. For companies, sponsoring a Cup driver in the Nationwide Series is a win/win proposition. They get the exposure and notoriety of a Cup driver, but for a much lower price.
Selling race tickets is a different situation though.
The whole idea of having lower series is to give more teams and drivers the opportunity to race. They are supposed to be a place for drivers to learn and gain experience, and hopefully earn a chance to move up. And the people who actually buy race tickets know this. They appreciate the series for what they are, and are not looking for Cup lite races.
If the fans only want to see Cup drivers race, than instead of having different series, we should have race weekends where we have three Cup races instead of just one. As our friend and TNI regular Neon suggests regularly, we could do short heat races on Friday and Saturday in advance of a main on Sundays. That way fans could pay less for tickets earlier in the weekend, but still see Cup drivers. And if that’s what the fans really want, than great. But don’t sell something as a developmental series, and then allow it to become that lite version of your top series.
In my own opinion I’d much rather watch a bunch of young and journeymen drivers duke it out, with maybe a scattered Cup driver or two, than watch a “developmental” series where half the field is Cup drivers. Like my title says, if I want to watch Cup drivers, I’ll buy a Cup ticket.
If there is one thing Red Bull Racing has shown over it’s short time in the sport, it’s that they have yet to create a decent strategy for properly developing racing talent. AJ Allmendinger was bounced right as it appeared he was making strides, and the team is currently embroiled in a lawsuit with Allmendinger’s replacement, Scott Speed, over his ouster from the team. Journo wrote recently about RBR’s driver situation for 2012, and whether or not young Cole Whitt might be next in line for a Cup ride when Kasey Kahne departs. But recent comments from Whitt show that Red Bull may not be doing everything necessary to give him the best chance to succeed.
On March 29th, NASCAR.com ran an interview Joe Menzer did with Whitt as he competes in his first full season of the Camping World Truck Series. Menzer covered a few different topics with Whitt, but one of the questions and the subsequent answer has to be a bit disconcerting if you are a RBR fan:
Q: Have you been able to interact with some of the veteran drivers from Red Bull and elsewhere? Whitt: Not too much, really. We’re all kind of off doing our own thing. I didn’t even get to talk to Kasey at Darlington, and our trucks were lined up starting right next to each other. I’ve pretty much been doing it by myself, I guess.
Q: Have you been able to interact with some of the veteran drivers from Red Bull and elsewhere?
Whitt: Not too much, really. We’re all kind of off doing our own thing. I didn’t even get to talk to Kasey at Darlington, and our trucks were lined up starting right next to each other. I’ve pretty much been doing it by myself, I guess.
What?! How is this even possible?
When a team has drivers like Kasey Kahne and Brian Vickers on their roster, how are they not facilitating time for these guys to mentor a development driver? You would think the insight and advice that these guys could offer would be huge for a young driver like Whitt. And you have to think it would help Whitt’s confidence to know that if he ever had a question, he’s got two solid resources that will be available to him.
What’s worse, is if this is how they are approaching Whitt’s development, you’ve really got to wonder if they did everything they could for ‘Dinger and Speed. Maybe if they would have done more with the drivers they had, they wouldn’t be in situations where they become desperate enough to take on lame duck drivers. There is just too much at stake with these kids to not do everything possible to help them be the best they can be.
Hopefully it’s not too late for RBR’s management to rectify this situation, and get these guys involved with bringing Whitt around. Because I know that if it was me that was in charge over there, I’d have this kid hanging around the drivers and teams as much as possible at the track and at the shop. I’d tell him to pay attention, listen to everything, and not be afraid to ask questions. Whitt appears to have a ton of talent and potential, and if Red Bull plays their cards right, he could be the face of their race team well into the future.
While most of the talk this week centered around the Burton/Gordon scuffle, the 48 pit crew swap, and the championship battle, young Trevor Bayne’s Cup Series debut went almost unnoticed. Bayne was making his first ever Cup start driving the famous Wood Brothers #21, and he certainly did not disappoint.
Over the last few seasons, the Wood Brothers have only run a limited Cup schedule, choosing select races to compete in as they did in the past. Bill Elliott has gotten the bulk of those starts, and because of his status as a past champion, is often guaranteed in the race. For Bayne though, just making the field at Texas would be an accomplishment, as he would not have owners points to fall back on because of the 21′s limited schedule.
On Friday at Texas, Bayne passed his first test with flying colors, qualifying the #21 Fusion in the 28th position. His situation would be made difficult however, as the team was forced to start at the rear of the field because of a transmission swap following practice.
After starting at the back of the 43 car field, Bayne did everything you can ask a driver making his Cup debut to do; finish the race and bring the car home in one piece. The young driver from Tennessee hung around the top 25 all day and brought the 21 home in the 17th position, and on the lead lap no less. He was able to out run the likes of Carl Edwards, Kurt Busch, Juan Pablo Montoya, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
On the Nationwide Series side, Bayne remains in the seventh spot in the points standings, and is the second highest NNS only driver. Since moving to Roush Fenway Racing a few weeks ago, Bayne has four top 20 finishes and appears to be getting more comfortable in his new home as the weeks progress.
RFR has yet to announce what Bayne’s 2011 schedule will look like, but most of the signs point to at least a part-time Cup Series schedule, along with a slate of more NNS races. Whatever the case however, the future appears to be very bright for Bayne.
When the Truck Series heads to Phoenix in another week, look for there to be yet another female racer on the entry list. Caitlin Shaw, a 21 year old driver from New Mexico, will attempt to make her second (yes second) career Truck Series start driving for Mario Gosselin’s DGM Racing. She will join Jennifer Jo Cobb, Johanna Long, Angela and Amber Cope, and Michelle Theriault on the list of women drivers who’ve driven in the Truck Series this season.
If you might remember, Shaw made her Truck Series debut last season at O’Reilly Raceway Park driving for Red Horse Racing. She qualified 32nd and brought her truck home in one piece, finishing a respectable 24th. Besides the lone CWTS start, her racing resume also includes quarter midgets, mini sprints, and a stint in a USAC midget.
Outside of driving, Shaw has spent the 2010 season working in the marketing/PR department for Michael Waltrip Racing. Her responsibilities including doing PR for Ryan Truex during his championship run in the K&N Pro Series East. (See a great recent interview with her here).
Shaw’s DGM Racing truck is being backed by The Oil Medics, a truck services company based out of Texas.
The recent run of female drivers attempting to break into NASCAR, like Shaw and Johanna Long, shows there is no shortage of qualified women racers out there. And Danica Patrick’s super star popularity is evidence that race fans are very eager for a woman to finally make it into the Cup Series. If Patrick doesn’t break through though, our odds for finding a woman who is capable are certainly getting better.
Here’s to hoping Shaw has success at Phoenix, and to more women drivers getting involved.
Justin Allgaier has had a solid season. In his second year in the Nationwide Series he has one win, two poles, 11 top-fives, 19 top-10s, 221 laps led (including 88 laps led this weekend) and a solid lock on fourth place in the points. He’s the leading Nationwide-only driver in the points and one of only four in the top-10. And yet he’s looking for a ride (I wrote about this a couple of weeks ago).
On the flip side is Brian Scott. He’s an OK driver and an affable guy. He lost his ride this season after the sale of Braun Racing to Steve Turner, owner of Turner Motorsports – it turns out Steve Turner only likes funded drivers when he’s doing the funding. Anyway, Scott, who has been driving for RAB Racing as of late, has had a mediocre season in which he’s posted one top-five and five top-10s. He sits 14th in the points.
Now both of these guys have talked to Joe Gibbs Racing about next year. One has money to fund a ride, the other doesn’t.
Last month JD Gibbs spoke glowingly about Scott and their potential relationship.
“I have a lot of respect for Brian…I met him several years ago and have followed him since he’s been in the sport. I think he’s gifted. We’re just going to go to work and see if something works out…We would love to have someone that could run for the full driver’s championship. Right now we can run (for) the owners championship but we can’t run the full drivers (title). I’d love to have someone that could run for the full driver’s championship and he’d be a good fit for that.”
On the other hand Allgaier spoke to ESPN’s David Newton a couple of weeks ago about where he stands.
Richard Petty Motorsports would be an ideal place for this budding star. Joe Gibbs Racing has been rumored to show interest. Allgaier admits he’s had casual talks with both of them, but not to the point he would say there is strong interest unless he has a sponsor promising to come with him.
Talking about how and why drivers have their rides these days has been a bit of a taboo subject. Consider this little back and forth between Kenny Wallace and Brian Scott on Twitter. Wallace, while talking about Trevor Bayne, said: “MY THOUGHTS..Trevor Bayne is a good driver, He will get a ride Imediately (sic) !..Brian Scotts dad is wealthy he will BUY a ride Imediately (sic)…”
Despite the bluntness of the statement, what Wallace said was true. Joe Scott’s the chairman of the JA & Kathryn Albertson Foundation, an Idaho real estate developer and the grandson of the founder of the grocery chain Albertson’s. The Scotts have money and are very able to help their son’s career.
Justin Allgaier too comes from a family who has been able financially to help his dream. Funding an ARCA team though is a little different than a Nationwide team. And the fact is, Allgaier got his job at Penske on his merits – not his family’s money.
Unfortunately, what we have today is a very expensive sport where winning and being competitive isn’t always the most important thing. There was a time not too long ago that rent-a-rides only existed at small organizations. Today, just about everybody has somebody paying for a ride.
I worry often that this practice is leaving us with a talent vacuum. The drivers are certainly out there, but if the only ones getting a chance are the ones with money, what does this mean for the future of competition?
It’s a tough situation we’re in, but one I hope doesn’t stand the test of time. It’s unfortunate a driver with all the talent in the world and strong record is no longer guaranteed a ride, but a driver with a thin record and all the money in the world is.
Now that the IndyCar season is in the books, Danica has turned her full attention to the Nationwide Series. Her start last Saturday at California kicked off a stretch run that will see her compete in every NNS race to finish out 2010. Coming into Fontana, Danica hadn’t done much outside of running in the back and creating a ton of ridiculous hype.
At the Auto Club Speedway on Saturday however, something may have changed. From a starting position of 14th (her best to date), Danica was able to run in the top-20 all day, and was looking to finish there before she was tagged in the right rear down the backstretch late in the race by James Buescher. The move appeared to be payback, and it ended Danica’s day. Now, as we head to Charlotte and the final NNS COT race of the season, was her performance a sign of things to come, or just a fluke?
For me personally, I think it would be huge if Patrick was actually showing signs of being competitive. A competitive female driver would be huge for the sport. But before I jump on the Danica bandwagon, I’ve got to see more. Remaining on the schedule are Charlotte, Gateway, Texas, Phoenix, and Homestead, all of which are tough race tracks. It would be a big step in the right direction if she could somehow find a way to do more then be a moving chicane.
Just so we are straight though, I am not naive enough to think that after just eight NNS starts, Danica has somehow figured it all out and will now become a weekly top-20 finisher. I do think she still has a ton to learn about how to actually race in NASCAR, and her incident with Buescher showed that.
What I want to see is for her to run well and be consistent during practice sessions, effectively communicate her car’s handling characteristics to Eury Jr. and Co., qualify decently, and make laps during the races without tearing up race cars. If she can do that, she just might convince me that success is possible for her.
It is no doubt a huge leap to go from open wheel to NASCAR, and Danica will definitely have a rougher go of it because she just isn’t as talented as guys like Juan Pablo Montoya and AJ Allmendinger. However, with the proper guidance, the willingness to learn, and a little luck, she just might figure it out.
What do you think?