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Tag: racecar driver

  • Danica Patrick Pretends To Be A Lyft Driver For A Day, Surprises Fans

    Danica Patrick Pretends To Be A Lyft Driver For A Day, Surprises Fans

    NASCAR star Danica Patrick became an ordinary Lyft car driver for a day and surprised her riders with her mad driving sills.

    Wearing a grey knitted cap, black leather jacket and a pair of shades, Danica Patrick was able to conceal her real identity. Those passengers she picked up in Charlotte, North Carolina experienced an exciting ride with the pro racer.

    Danica Patrick entertained her passengers with a few moves on the street and even tried to get other drivers to race her, but of course she was still very careful considering she was driving on the streets of North Carolina and not on the circuit.

    “I try and get in, like, 500 miles on Sundays, and I try and do it in, like, under four hours,” Patrick said to one unsuspecting passenger when she tried to give clues as to her real identity. In the video, she repeatedly said she loved making “left turns.”

    However, her passengers were totally unaware that they got a ride from a NASCAR star. One guy described Danica Patrick as “awesome” when the she asked of his opinion about “the girl who races.” Another rider said his favorite race car driver was Danica Patrick and he had no idea he was with the very person.

    When she revealed her identity, the passengers were all surprised. They all took selfies with the star before parting. Everybody seemed to have enjoyed their once-in-lifetime joy ride.

    Watch Danica Patrick Take These Unsuspecting Passengers for a Joy Ride

    On Sunday, Danica Patrick will be driving for Stewart-Haas Racing, her new team, with new crew chief, Billy Scott and sponsor, Nature’s Bakery. The racer is keeping her hopes up that the changes will bring her first Sprint Cup victory in five years on the track this year.

    Lyft had previously enlisted Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant and NFL star Jerry Rice as Lyft drivers.

  • Danica Patrick Fined $50k For Deliberate Crash On David Gilliland

    Things got heated up on Martinsville Speedway on Sunday when driver Danica Patrick intentionally crashed into David Gilliland’s No. 38 car during a Sprint Cup race.

    The collision is reported to have stemmed from an earlier scuffle between the two drivers, in which Gilliland pushed Patrick’s No. 10 Chevrolet up against the outer wall.

    This isn’t the first time that Patrick and Gilliland have bumped heads – or cars – on the track. Ever since the former 2005 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year transitioned to NASCAR in 2010, she and Gilliland frequently shared the same spot in the races.

    During a Kansas Speedway race in 2013, Patrick warned, “He tries to take me out every time. Tell his spotter that I’m coming after him if he does it again. In fact, I might just do it right now.”

    Gilliland responded to the “threat” with a brief “Shut up and race.”

    As a result of the offense, Patrick was given a $50,000 fine and took off 25 series championship driver points. She is also banned from participating in any of the NASCAR races until the end of the year. It is worth noting that the damage on Patrick’s car was far greater than that of Gilliland’s

    Aside from Patrick, Matt Kenseth also got penalties when he also deliberately wrecked Joey Logano’s No. 22 car on the same race.

    In a previous race on the Kansas Speedway, Logano had hit Kenseth, causing the latter to spin out of the lead. Kenseth claims that the contact was intentional, which prompted him to retaliate.

    NASCAR gave Kenseth a two-race suspension as well as a six-month probation period.

  • Danica Patrick Out Of Chase For Sprint Cup

    Danica Patrick is no longer in the running for the Chase for the Sprint Cup this year, as she failed to finish in Victory Lane at Richmond, but she certainly has proven herself a worthy member of the Stewart-Haas Racing team with her performance this season.

    Although she missed out on the top 15 and needed another “Lucky Dog” to remain on the lead lap, it was still a career-best result at the track.

    “It was a good day. Everyone on the GoDaddy team worked hard; we had good night. I’m proud of where we have been the last two weeks, and tonight was by far our best run at Richmond. It was a good job by the team,” said Patrick about the night after the race. “If we could have got one more caution, it would have been nice. But it didn’t happen. Still, I’m proud of these guys and for GoDaddy. It’s our best run here by far. We’ve been testing a lot, so hopefully everyone can wind down on Sunday before we get ready for Chicago.”

    Patrick, who started racing with go-karts at 10, was the first woman to win a Sprint Cup pole after qualifying first for the Daytona 500 in February 2013.

    Patrick made history again by coming home sixth in the Oral-B USA 500 in Atlanta earlier this month, which was the best ever for a woman at the Atlanta Motor Speedway. She took the record from Janet Guthrie who finished 10th in March 1978.  This is not only Patrick’s best result of the season but also the best finish of her Sprint Cup career.

    Along with her career-best sixth in Atlanta, the 32-year-old racer has had nine top-20 finishes this year, just one short of tying her mark from last season. Patrick finished 28th in the Sprint Cup standings, with Richmond marking the end of the regular season.

    The ten-race Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup begins in Chicago, with 16 drivers. Patrick’s Stewart-Haas Racing teammates Kurt Busch and Kevin Harvick are in the hunt.

  • Michael Schumacher: Slightly Improved But Still In Critical Condition

    French doctors treating former Formula One driver Michael Schumacher have announced today that his condition has improved but remains fragile after a successful overnight operation.

    While skiing with his son on Sunday, Schumacher fell and hit his head against a large rock. The accident happened in the French Alps and has since left him fighting for his life.

    Michael Schumacher is a 44-year-old retired German race car driver and a 7-time Formula One champion. Many regard him as one of the greatest Formula One racers of all time due to his numerous race victories. Schumacher retired in 2006 but made a comeback in 2010 before retiring again in 2012.

    Doctors said there was internal bleeding within Schumacher’s skull but his condition had stabilized by Monday evening after an operation was carried out at Grenoble University Hospital in France.

    “The situation is more under control than yesterday but we cannot say he is out of danger,” doctors told reporters in a news conference.  The doctors further said that it is improper to engage in premature speculation since Schumacher is still in a critical condition. He is under an artificially induced coma.

    According to the doctors, Schumacher’s helmet saved his life. Had he not been wearing his helmet at the time he may have died on impact. At around 10pm, doctors were able to remove a large blood clot in the brain during the emergency operation. The operation was intended to take pressure off his brain.

    “We can’t say that he is out of danger. The surgery bought us more time. The situation can improve as well as worsen,” said Dr. Jean-Francois Payen, head of the hospital’s anesthesia department. He also added that Schumacher still cannot be transferred to another hospital at the moment due to the fragile nature of his condition.

    Schumacher’s family, friends and fans are hopeful that the racing legend will pull through.

    Image via Wikipedia

  • Dario Franchitti Replaced by Alex Tagliani in Finale

    Scottish IndyCar Series driver Dario Franchitti has had quite a week. In an abrupt turn of events, Franchitti went from the race track at Houston’s Reliant Park to Memorial Hermann Texas Medical Center. Now, he’s being replaced by Alex Tagliani in the upcoming IndyCar season finale.

    Target Chip Ganassi announced on Wednesday that veteran IndyCar driver, Alex Tagliani would replace Franchitti in the season finale at Fontana, USA Today reported.

    Tagliani released an official statement in wake of the recent changes to the season finale line-up. “As a driver you never want an opportunity like this to come under these circumstances, but I’m up for the challenge and looking forward to working with my friend Scott and the whole Target team,” said Tagliani.

    Tagliani also sent well wishes to Franchitti and posted a picture of him on Twitter as he was discharged from the hospital. The tweet made a light-hearted reference to Franchitti’s injury and his dogs that were photographed with him.
    https://twitter.com/tagliani/statuses/388398380461740032

    For those who aren’t aware of how the turn of events took place, here’s the gist: On Sunday, Franchitti was involved in a serious auto crash that occurred during the IndyCar series at Reliant Park in Houston, TX. During the race, the left side of Franchitti’s car made contact with Takuma Sato’s.

    The impact sent the front end of Franchitti’s car airborne, crashing into the catch-fence. Debris from the fence and Franchitti’s car flew into one of the grandstands, hitting several fans and spectators. A total of 14 people, which was comprised of 13 fans and an IndyCar official, were hurt as a result of the accident.

    The four-time IndyCar champion and three-time Indianapolis 500 winner, was placed on a stretched and taken by ambulance to the Memorial Hermann Texas Medical Center. It was later revealed that Franchitti suffered two spinal fracture, a broken ankle, and a concussion.

    However, Franchitti has maintained high spirits. Franchitti took time to issue a short statement via Twitter. He shared his concern for the injured spectators and thanked the fans for their support.

     
    Image via Twitter | Dario Franchitti