[dunnere]

NASCAR: Contract Clause Could Result In SHR Parting Ways With Patrick After 2017

Originally posted on The Sports Daily
By Christopher Olmstead Last updated 6/5/17

Could Danica Patrick's time with Stewart-Haas Racing be coming to a close? A clause in her current contract could result in SHR moving on from the driver of the No. 10 machine following the 2017 NASCAR season.

All good things must come to an end and if you're SHR and Danica Patrick, it looks like the good thing in question would be their working relationship. Patrick is currently under contract with SHR through 2018 but recent reports suggest that the two sides could be in discussions to part ways following the 2017 season.

Stewart-Haas Racing and Danica Patrick are reviewing their options about whether she will continue on as a driver for the team after this year, according to sources. Patrick is signed with SHR through '18, but there are clauses in her contract that could see the relationship end after this year, and the sides are discussing their choices, sources said. Patrick's nearly decade-long relationship with GoDaddy that spanned back to her time in IndyCar ended after '15, and SHR has run into challenges securing primary sponsorship. Nature's Bakery earlier this year backed away from its three-year, $45M deal after one season.

On Sunday in Dover, Patrick scored her first top-10 finish of the 2017 season. The top-10 finish was also her first such finish since 2015. Through 13 races this season Patrick has an average starting position of 23.9 and an average finishing position of 26.5. Should Patrick's current average finishing position maintain (or get worse), it would be the worst of her NASCAR career since she became a full-time driver back in 2013.

Since 2012, Patrick has run in 167 Cup Series races. In those 167 starts, she has only managed to finish inside of the top-10 on seven different occasions. Patrick has run 47,506 laps in her NASCAR career, of which only 64 of them have been while she was leading a race. In her 167 starts, she has finished 144 of those races. However, she has only finished 64 races in her career on the lead lap, that's 38 percent.

Even though the stats aren't there, Patrick has found success in NASCAR. Patrick is easily one of the most notable names in the sport and her worth from a marketing stance has been valuable to SHR. Patrick has also been a role model to female athletes and female fans. Unfortunately, NASCAR is a business that deals with the on-track stuff as well and that is an area where she has simply struggled. Those struggles have certainly led to some of the sponsorship woes that she and SHR have dealt with during her time with the team.

Looking ahead, SHR is in a solid position in 2017 outside of Patrick. Kurt Busch won the Daytona 500 and Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer (despite not winning yet in 2017) are in a position to make the playoffs based on points. Ideally a team wants their entire stable to be capable of making the playoffs and contending for a title and when it comes to the No. 10 team, that doesn't appear to be where they are headed with Patrick behind the wheel.

If SHR does indeed cut ties with Patrick after 2017 (or even 2018 when her contract ends) it will be hard to imagine another team picking her up. SHR runs quality equipment and in that equipment Patrick was average at best. Sure, she could probably hop on with a smaller team that would be looking to take advantage of her star power, but that would not be an ideal situation for Patrick who would most likely be rendered uncompetitive at that point.

If 2017 is the end for Patrick with SHR, it most likely will also be the end for her in NASCAR.

[spazmatastic]

Interesting. I didn't know Nature's Bakery backed out of their deal, but have been wondering why they weren't on the car for quite a while. If she is done in NASCAR, I'm sure she could go back to Indy or even try F1 racing.

[dunnere]

Interesting. I didn't know Nature's Bakery backed out of their deal, but have been wondering why they weren't on the car for quite a while. If she is done in NASCAR, I'm sure she could go back to Indy or even try F1 racing.

Oh. yeah, the whole Nature's Bakery Brreach of Contract lawsuit was a big story at the start of the season...she was not in any of the pre-season publicity with their logo anywhere in sight.

Nature's Bakery, Stewart-Haas Racing Reconcile In Danica Patrick Case

By Dakota Randall on NESN Sunday, May 28, 2017

After being entangled in a war of words that went on for months, Stewart-Haas Racing and Nature's Bakery finally have made peace.

Back in February, SHR filed breach of contract lawsuit against Nature's Bakery, after the snack food company backed out of its sponsorship deal with Danica Patrick. But that lawsuit has been dropped, as part of an equitable agreement that SHR announced in a press release Friday, via FOX Sports.

But not only are the two organizations putting an end to their legal disputes, they're also getting back together.

Nature's Bakery will sponsor four Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races, split between Patrick and Clint Bowyer, according to the release. SHR said the dates for the races will be announced at a later date.

The news marks a positive end to situation appeared destined to end ugly.

"It's gratifying to see a difficult situation get resolved in a professional manner that suits all parties," SHR president Brett Frood said in the release. "Together, we worked diligently to find an equitable solution to our collective challenges."

One question that remains unanswered, though, is how much longer Patrick will be around for Nature's Bakery to sponsor.

[wilsonsportscards]

Yeah there Natures Bakery deal left them scrambling for a sponsor. Even a couple weeks before the Daytona 500 they were still trying to hammer out a deal. I know SHR is going after the 20 plus million for this years sponsorship from Natures Bakery. I am sure they will win some if not all of it. She might not stay with SHR but she is a cash cow. Someone will sign her.

[toploader1976]

NA$CAR has been in scramble mode for the last few years. More and more tracks are removing seats or covering them with advertisements and the seats they do have are only 50% full. The product on the track is monotonous and the rules seemingly always change mid-race. Now with Junior retiring and Jimmie probably doing so by 2020 they have nowhere to go because, like the PGA Tour, the focus on the ones who are popular. The Nationwide Series needs more attention, make it an actual proving ground for the next level, same with the Trucks. I watched the ARCA race last night on NBCSN and it was 100 times more exciting and competitive than NASCAR.

[wilsonsportscards]

Yes, I agree....I don't care for all of the rules. I hate the splitters on the front of the car. Someone goes off track and their day is done. I also REALLY dislike all of the 1.5 mile tracks. I feel like the racing is all the same with little opportunity to rub and race. I think they need to have more short tracks and even road courses. Some of the best finishes the last handful of years have been on road courses.

They also lost their history. They need a better balance of old and new. I hate that they lost tracks like North Wilkesboro, and Rockingham. I also don't like that they cut Darlington from 2 races to 1. I get that things change, some of these places are new and state of the art. I just enjoy the history as well. I guess when I see them picking up Texas, Vegas, California...all very similar tracks. In return they are cutting the historic short tracks.

I agree, the next 10 years in racing will be very interesting. In my opinion they need to get back to their roots.

[toploader1976]

Yes, I agree....I don't care for all of the rules. I hate the splitters on the front of the car. Someone goes off track and their day is done. I also REALLY dislike all of the 1.5 mile tracks. I feel like the racing is all the same with little opportunity to rub and race. I think they need to have more short tracks and even road courses. Some of the best finishes the last handful of years have been on road courses.

They also lost their history. They need a better balance of old and new. I hate that they lost tracks like North Wilkesboro, and Rockingham. I also don't like that they cut Darlington from 2 races to 1. I get that things change, some of these places are new and state of the art. I just enjoy the history as well. I guess when I see them picking up Texas, Vegas, California...all very similar tracks. In return they are cutting the historic short tracks.

I agree, the next 10 years in racing will be very interesting. In my opinion they need to get back to their roots.

I used to go to the Rockingham races. NASCAR decided to move the races from that track because of the weather for the races in February and late October/November and because there wasn't enough money in and around Rockingham to support 2 races. First off, NASCAR controlled the schedule, if you're complaining about the weather for a certain track, then MOVE it. I never understood going from Daytona to Rockingham anyway. Daytona, Atlanta, Darlington, it's so simple. Secondly, Rockingham is basically between Raleigh (a city commonly listed as one of the best places in the US to live) and Pinehurst (a golf rich area with no shortage of millionaires). No let's put 2 races on a 2 mile track near Los Angeles. If you build it, they won't come. California is, was, and will be a yawnfest.

[spazmatastic]

As long as NASCAR keeps 2 races each at Martinsville and Bristol and at least 2 road courses every year, I'll continue to watch. I would like to see a night race at Martinsville now that they have lights, preferably the Spring race. Also, as long as they keep the October race in the daytime on a Sunday, I'll keep going to it. I would love to go to a race at Rockingham. I was hoping the CWTS would go back to it last year or this year, but no luck there. With the "Roval" race at Charlotte being added to the Cup Series, I just might have to go to that one!
As for fan-favorite drivers retiring at a rapid pace, there are plenty of "young guns" that are getting a lot of attention. For example, Chase Elliott beat Danica in the fan vote for the AS race. She'd only been beaten by Dale Jr. until this year.

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I used to go to the Rockingham races. NASCAR decided to move the races from that track because of the weather for the races in February and late October/November and because there wasn't enough money in and around Rockingham to support 2 races. First off, NASCAR controlled the schedule, if you're complaining about the weather for a certain track, then MOVE it. I never understood going from Daytona to Rockingham anyway. Daytona, Atlanta, Darlington, it's so simple. Secondly, Rockingham is basically between Raleigh (a city commonly listed as one of the best places in the US to live) and Pinehurst (a golf rich area with no shortage of millionaires). No let's put 2 races on a 2 mile track near Los Angeles. If you build it, they won't come. California is, was, and will be a yawnfest.

Welcome to the site! I hope you'll stick around on the Racing forum. We really need more action on here.