On Thursday, May 8, at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet SS team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) unloaded Chassis No. 10-837, a new car that had not been used previously.
On Friday, May 9, Danica Patrick, driver of the GoDaddy Chevrolet, placed 26th in the first practice and 23rd in the final practice for Saturday night’s 400-mile NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway oval.
But the right adjustments from crew chief Tony Gibson and some helpful hints from teammate Kevin Harvick helped her earn the ninth spot on the starting grid in impressive fashion during Friday evening’s qualifying session.
On Saturday, May 10, Patrick raised a few eyebrows by running in the top-10 for the majority of the event, running as high as third late in the race and finishing a career-best seventh.
This Saturday night, Chassis No. 10-837 returns once again to take part in another race on a 1.5-mile oval, this time at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta. And Patrick is hoping it can produce the same results it did at Kansas, if not better.
She’s had success at Kentucky before, notably a pole in the 2005 IndyCar race and four top-10 finishes in seven IndyCar starts. Her NASCAR Nationwide Series credentials aren’t been bad, either, with finishes of 12th and 14th in two starts in 2012.
Patrick is on a better pace this year than last as, through 16 races in 2013, her average Sprint Cup starting position was 32.0 while this year she averages 21.8.
It’s the same with finishes as this year she’s placed 18th or better five times while last year she ended up 18th or better five times in all 36 races.
Patrick is hoping all of that can continue in Saturday night’s Kentucky 400 and that she can continue to excel.
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