IndyCar 2008 *Spoilers*

[sports.espn.go.com]

so, Danica finally won....

Sim

---

All Hail The New York Giants - Winners of Superbowl XXI, XXV and XLII!

"I'd love to know what goes on in that crazy head of yours sometimes, Sim..." - Locke Cole

DANIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIICAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!

FINALLY!

---

She did WHAT now?!

---

Everyone knows that million-to-one chances happen 9 times out of 10; indeed, it's a common requirement in fairy tales. If the human didn't have to overcome huge odds, what would be the point? Terry Pratchett - The Science Of Discworld

GPGSL S5 Race driver for IED.

Love the title of the article. How exactly is she going to silence her critics? She's won 1 solitary race, that apparently she didn't deserve to anyway. Are Button and Honda less chastised because he's only won 1 race and still massive underachievers?

She's got a massive advantage over every other driver - she should be a regular winner and be able to do something other than crash on tracks that turn right as well as left.

I wouldn't care if she did well. Really, she's just another driver. I've nothing against her (Dave does as he's met her and seen what she's apparently like). But I do despise the fact that she's got this huge fan-club for the sole reason that she's a woman.

I am not a fan of hers but this is a historic day

It will make for unbearable tv viewing from now on though...

---

also not a fan, and i agree with Gav here, its a very similar situation to Button. if she goes on to win a few more then i would say she has finally become a 'top-line' driver, but i cant see that happening myself.

and i do hope teh IndyCar broadcasts dont trun into a Danica-fest now

Sim

---

All Hail The New York Giants - Winners of Superbowl XXI, XXV and XLII!

"I'd love to know what goes on in that crazy head of yours sometimes, Sim..." - Locke Cole

I am somewhat disappointed. Not because Danica won, but because the facts overshadow the importance of this event. A woman just won an Indy Car race, and whilst I see men and woman as equal, that is a big thing. But half the field isn't there (they are at Long Beach), and she wins on fuel strategy and yet everyones already talking about how she is silencing her critics and all the rest of it.

Well done to Danica and Andretti Green. And well done to Danica on winning her first race in ANY car series ever...

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
theRacingLine.net
SportsCarArchives.com

DaveEllis Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
well done to Danica on winning her first race in ANY car series ever...

Is that really true?

That is just abysmal

_______________________________________________________________________

Other than karting (which is why I used the word car), I don't beleive she has ever won in any series.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
theRacingLine.net
SportsCarArchives.com

No, she hasn't. Just read that on a Dutch site.

As for her victory, she should've won way earlier with the advantage she has.

@ Bruno: Do you only support hopeless people or something?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/20/2008 06:36PM by Nickv.

whats this advantage? if your on about her weight lets not forget teh danica rule introduced this season :P

Sim

---

All Hail The New York Giants - Winners of Superbowl XXI, XXV and XLII!

"I'd love to know what goes on in that crazy head of yours sometimes, Sim..." - Locke Cole

time for Honda to offer her an F1 test

---

gav Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Love the title of the article. How exactly is she
> going to silence her critics? She's won 1 solitary
> race, that apparently she didn't deserve to
> anyway. Are Button and Honda less chastised
> because he's only won 1 race and still massive
> underachievers?
>

Didn't deserve to win because she won it on fuel strategy right? Not too different from F1 at the moment by the sounds of it...

I know jack all about indycar though so I'll shut up now

didn't deserve to win because giving credit to Patrick is not hip, win or not...

---

Nickv Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> No, she hasn't. Just read that on a Dutch site.
>
> As for her victory, she should've won way earlier
> with the advantage she has.
>
> @ Bruno: Do you only support hopeless people or
> something?


Whats wrong with that? When they win, its even better than depreciated world champions winning it every year.

---

zeppelin101 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> gav Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Love the title of the article. How exactly is
> she
> > going to silence her critics? She's won 1
> solitary
> > race, that apparently she didn't deserve to
> > anyway. Are Button and Honda less chastised
> > because he's only won 1 race and still massive
> > underachievers?
> >
>
> Didn't deserve to win because she won it on fuel
> strategy right? Not too different from F1 at the
> moment by the sounds of it...

I can only go off what I've seen reported, and the team took a gamble. It worked, so thumbs up, but you can't say it didn't have more than an element of luck. Because this is Danica Patrick it's assumed I'm having a go? I've already stated I couldn't care less if she's got balls or not - it's just another driver to me. It's the circus around her I can't stand.

Actually I´m not a Danica Fanboy either, but there is one thing that´s important for the whole IndyCar series... SHE DID IT (and complaining about her winning it only on strategy is bullshit, as others have done so before and will do in the future. THAT is a basic part of Oval Racing)
But in the end the most important thing is the positive effect IndyCars can take out of it...

I. The merger (long overdue and no matter who won or who didnt it´s a better situation for BOTH former series !

II. The winning streak if THE BIG THREE has been broken by Newman Haas Lannigan (something I had hoped and expected, though not as soon as that. BIG plus it´s also one of the "new" teams)

III. Graham Rahal won as the youngest driver in Indycar history (that makes great publicity as he is young and american [not nessacarily an advantage in my book lol, but good as it is an american series after all})

IV. Now Danica has won (first woman to win an Indycar race makes marvelous publicity as well)

V. Now they have three hot youngsters to build their franchise on, of which two bare big names in american Motorsports. Rahal / Andretti / Patrick ... So far the merger worked out far better than ANYONE could have hoped

PS: Personally I dont think Danica is as talented as her stardom may suggest, but I appreciate it anyways as there have been far less talented people being famous for far less. I just hope Katherine Legge will get back into IndyCars next year and wont blow away her carreer in a crappy two year old Audi in the DTM (YES I´m a fanboy)

I just hope Katherine Legge will get back into IndyCars next year and wont blow away her carreer in a crappy two year old Audi in the DTM (YES I´m a fanboy)

Legge won't be anywhere near Indy Cars next year. She only had the seat because CCWS needed a female to battle Danica-Mania when the 2 series were at each others throats. There was no female driver even close to good enough in the states, so they looked elsehwere and brought Legge into a weak Atlantic field to nurture her. It is no co-incidence that she ended up in PKV Racing, a team owned by 2 of the series owners.

Her first DTM event was an embarressment. 1st-17th was separated by just 1 minutes 5 seconds, yet Legge was a further 25 seconds further back on her own. Yes, she has old equipment, but so does half of the DTM field.

Legges time in the light is done. She was given a big chance and blew it when she spun in every race apart from Milwaukee in 2006. She was kept around until the merger, then dropped when she was no longer needed. The back of the DTM grid is pretty poor (Engel, Albers and Lauda, although they seem to have lost Ickx which is good news, as she was a rolling accident) so I don't see her getting dropped quickly, but I don't see her going anywhere fast.

Indy Cars will be hot property soon enough. Now that its a unified series, there is actually places for young single-seater drivers in the states to go to other than NASCAR. You have to wonder if Sam Hornish, Dario Franchitti and Patrick Carpentier are thinking of making a return now that its one series, and Adrian Fernandez and Michel Jourdain Jr have already said they might give it a go too. There is going to be no room for no-hopers in Indy Car soon, and man I can't wait for a good grid.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
theRacingLine.net
SportsCarArchives.com

DaveEllis schreef:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Legges time in the light is done. She was given a
> big chance and blew it when she spun in every race
> apart from Milwaukee in 2006. She was kept around
> until the merger, then dropped when she was no
> longer needed. The back of the DTM grid is pretty
> poor (Engel, Albers and Lauda, although they seem
> to have lost Ickx which is good news, as she was a
> rolling accident) so I don't see her getting
> dropped quickly, but I don't see her going
> anywhere fast.

I disagree with the poor drivers part, dont forget Albers ran for the title in DTM in 2003 and 2004 when he was promoted to the factory team of Mercedes, and Engel was doing quite well in Oschersleben untill he was hit bij Tom Kristensen.

Susie Stoddart seems to make a good fist of driving old DTM machinery for Mercedes. Certainly stuck it to Ickx last year.



RedSam
Winner: Not the Nickv Comment of the Year 2009
Due to the voting system in Germany, Governments are always made up of coalitions of different parties. At the last election, an almost unprecidented result saw the CDU/CSU (rough equivilant of the Conservatives) go into Government with the SPD (rough equivilant of Labour)