DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Danica Patrick’s final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race started the same it began – with a crash in the Daytona 500.
Sunday’s “Great American Race” was her last scheduled NASCAR event with her only other race in her Motorsports career will come in May at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway for her Verizon IndyCar Series return to the Indianapolis 500.
Patrick, a native of Roscoe, Ill. debuted in the Cup Series in the 2012 Daytona and was collected in a wreck on Lap 2 of the event. Despite a damaged No. 10 Chevrolet, she was running at the finish and ended up 38th.
Unfortunately for the 35-year-old, that was not the case on Sunday.
Patrick, driving the No. 7 GoDaddy Chevrolet for Premium Motorsports never contended for the lead or the top-10, but remained in the lead draft and out of trouble until she was swept in a multi-car accident on Lap 102.
“The car was a lot better than it was in the Duel; a lot better than in practice. Tony Eury Jr., my crew chief, did an awesome job. The guys – the whole team – did a really good job,” Patrick said.
“I know we pulled this together not that long ago – a month ago – that’s a tall order to get a car ready for a superspeedway that’s competitive. But it was. I said earlier today that I feel like the whole thing was picture perfect with GoDaddy on the car and it being that green again.
“But it just wasn’t meant to be today.”
Patrick’s team owned by Jay Robinson did not have a backup car, which led to her a less aggressive approach in Thursday night’s qualifying race to ensure her primary car would remain intact for her seventh 500.
Throughout the early stages of the race, Patrick admitted she didn’t have the fastest car but felt she could be competitive.
“Not the fastest car, it was definitely lethargic getting up to speed on the starts and when we checked up, but other than that it ran really well,” she said.
“I’m just sad that it ended that way.”
Patrick concludes her NASCAR Cup Series career with just seven top-10 finishes in 191 career starts and just 64 laps led. She is the only woman to win a pole in the Cup Series and the first to lead laps in both the Daytona 500 and Indianapolis 500.
For her final race, Patrick was reunited with GoDaddy who shoved the icon into the spotlight with her transition from open-wheel cars to stock cars. The domain registrar and web hosting giant will also sponsor her at Indianapolis, with Patrick expected to drive for Ed Carpenter Racing, a secret that she accident leaked during Daytona 500 Media Day on Feb. 14.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
