Danica to sign new contract soon
07/16/06 This rumor is upgraded to 'fact' tonight. 10pm Sunday FOX 59 in Indianapolis reports Danica Patrick has signed with Andretti Green Racing for 2007.
07/16/06 In a pre-race interview before the Firestone Indy 200 in Nashville Saturday night Danica Patrick made it plain and clear that she will not be moving to NASCAR next year and will remain in IndyCars, so if she is close to signing a deal, it won't be to race in NASCAR. The NASCAR move was just hype for some free PR and to extract more money from Tony George's bank account.
"I really feel that if you want to win Indy, you need to be in IndyCar," she told ESPN.
"Having been there and having done so well, I know what that single race can do for you in your whole life. Since one of my goals is to win that race, I don't believe I can be anywhere else but IndyCar."
Patrick told ESPN her goals of winning the Indianapolis 500 haven't changed because her parents attended a Nextel Cup race last weekend. But she said those goals would be reassessed when she wins the Indianapolis 500.
07/15/06 LEBANON, Tenn. — Danica Patrick has gotten so serious with contract talks, a deal could be imminent.
The difficult part is determining which team, and which series, is in the lead.
"I think whatever happens, it will come to a head sooner rather than later," Patrick said Friday at Nashville Superspeedway, where she and the Indy Racing League will race tonight in the Firestone Indy 200.
Within the next week?
"Maybe," she said.
Patrick, who is in the final year of her contract with Rahal Letterman Racing, has met with team owner Bobby Rahal twice this weekend and considers his team among the front-runners.
But there is at least one other IRL team in the mix, she confirmed Friday, along with at least one in NASCAR. She wouldn't tip her hand.
Said Rahal: "As far as I know, she's staying here. But one thing I've learned, no one is irreplaceable, including me." More at Indy Star