July 9, 2009
By Doug Demmons
With Martin Truex Jr. now officially gone to Michael Waltrip Racing and Toyota, the Silly Season spotlight shifts to Earnhardt-Ganassi, which has a gaping hole in its driver lineup.
EGR could make it simple and put Aric Almirola in that ride for next year. Almirola has been on the shelf since sponsorship for his No. 8 dried up at the beginning of this year.
But that ride is sponsored by Bass Pro Shops, which is not signed for the full season next year. Would the company be encouraged to sign up for the full year with an unproven young driver at the helm?
Not likely.
And it wouldn’t do much good to put Almirola in the car and then pull the plug on him a second time because sponsorship ran out after midseason.
The solution to this dilemma is obvious -- although probably so obvious that it’ll never happen.
Chip Ganassi needs to sign Danica Patrick.
It’s a win-win for everyone, except perhaps the Indy Racing League.
1. Ganassi has one of the top two teams in IndyCar racing. If Patrick signed with Ganassi she’d be in a premier ride and would have the best opportunity she has ever had to win the Indy 500 next year.
2. The Indy season is only 18 races long. There would be plenty of opportunities for her to get behind the wheel of an Earnhardt-Ganassi Chevy and see if stock-car racing is her thing. She could run 10-12 Sprint Cup races and let Almirola run the rest.
3. Bass Pro Shops would have the most marketable driver in the nation after Dale Earnhardt Jr. driving its car and starring in its commercials. If that isn’t incentive to not only sign on for the full season but ink a lucrative multi-year deal, I don’t know what else would be.
4. Patrick would have a chance to test the NASCAR waters without expectations going through the roof since she would only be a part-time driver.
Even if she signs with a top team like Hendrick or Roush, Patrick would struggle next season. Sam Hornish Jr., an accomplished Indy driver, needed more than a year before he finally figured it out. It would take her at least that long.
If it takes longer, her commercial value -- her “brand” as she puts it -- will be damaged.
But what better reason is there for this to happen than the fact that the car she’d be driving would be the No. 1?
Doug Demmons is a writer and editor for the Birmingham News ~ he writes daily and weekly auto racing columns ranging from NASCAR to open wheel to Formula One, local tracks and more... you can read Doug's columns online at Blog of Tommorow
The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN.
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