Danica Patrick to race in Las Vegas
Danica Patrick will race in this year's Sam's Town 300 on Feb. 27 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway during her initial year on NASCAR's Nationwide Series, speedway officials announced Thursday.
Patrick, who has been racing in the Indy Racing series since 2005, will participate in a 10-race schedule for Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s JR Motorsports team in 2010. She will continue to compete full time in the Indy Series.
The 27-year-old Patrick became the first woman to win a Indy race when she captured Indy Japan 300 in 2008. She was the fourth women ever to race in the famed Indianapolis 500 when she started the prestigious open-wheel race in 2005.
She's one of the racing's most marketable figures, including involvement in advertisements for GoDaddy.com, her primary NASCAR sponsor, during Super Bowls.
"We're ecstatic to be the site of one of Danica's first races in NASCAR competition," Las Vegas Motor Speedway President Chris Powell said in a press release. "Danica is one of the most recognizable figures in all of sports, and her decision to place the Sam's Town 300 on her schedule will add tremendous excitement to our 2010 NASCAR Weekend. "
Speedway officials plan to use Patrick to help promote this year's race weekend, Feb. 27 and 28. Last year's Cup race attracted more than 100,000 fans for the third straight year — Nevada's largest one-day sporting-event crowd of the year — but officials had to reduce some ticket prices because of the poor economy and didn't construct a 10,000-seat grandstand used in past races.
"Her decision to enter stock-car competition opens many doors in the NASCAR world from a promotional standpoint, and it provides a unique opportunity for us to cultivate new fans," Powell said.
Source: Danica Patrick to race in Las Vegas
Patrick, who has been racing in the Indy Racing series since 2005, will participate in a 10-race schedule for Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s JR Motorsports team in 2010. She will continue to compete full time in the Indy Series.
The 27-year-old Patrick became the first woman to win a Indy race when she captured Indy Japan 300 in 2008. She was the fourth women ever to race in the famed Indianapolis 500 when she started the prestigious open-wheel race in 2005.
She's one of the racing's most marketable figures, including involvement in advertisements for GoDaddy.com, her primary NASCAR sponsor, during Super Bowls.
"We're ecstatic to be the site of one of Danica's first races in NASCAR competition," Las Vegas Motor Speedway President Chris Powell said in a press release. "Danica is one of the most recognizable figures in all of sports, and her decision to place the Sam's Town 300 on her schedule will add tremendous excitement to our 2010 NASCAR Weekend. "
Speedway officials plan to use Patrick to help promote this year's race weekend, Feb. 27 and 28. Last year's Cup race attracted more than 100,000 fans for the third straight year — Nevada's largest one-day sporting-event crowd of the year — but officials had to reduce some ticket prices because of the poor economy and didn't construct a 10,000-seat grandstand used in past races.
"Her decision to enter stock-car competition opens many doors in the NASCAR world from a promotional standpoint, and it provides a unique opportunity for us to cultivate new fans," Powell said.
Source: Danica Patrick to race in Las Vegas
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