It’s undeniable who the best current driver in NASCAR is- Jimmie Johnson. It’s undeniable who the most polarizing and most visible current driver in NASCAR is- Danica Patrick. When Danica shifted from IndyCar to NASCAR a few years ago it was great for both her and stock car racing. Obviously, she’s been pretty bad, with an average finish around 26th or 27th place.
Her best ever finish was 6th place a couple weeks ago. On Sunday, she will race in her “homecoming” at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois. Patrick grew up in Roscoe, Illinois, which is 116 miles northwest of the racetrack. She will have some friends and family in attendance, but she’ll also realize, if she hasn’t already, that the sport is rapidly losing interest in the area.
From Crain’s:
The share of Chicagoans who say they are interested in the sport has dropped to 18 percent of adults from 26 percent in 2008, according to Nielsen Scarborough. That’s a slightly steeper decrease than the trend nationally, where interest has dropped to 24 percent of Americans from 31 percent over the same period, in part due to the recession’s impact on the sport’s largely blue-collar fan base.
In addition, rainy weather dampened attendance for two of its first three seasons hosting the Chase kickoff event, which returns Sept. 14.
Sunday begins the first year of the new Chase for the Cup format (NASCAR’s playoffs). This is the third year in a row that the Chase has begun in the nation’s third largest market. Still, NASCAR just isn’t resonating in the second city. It’s still perceived as a southern, rural sport.
Obviously, this is a macrolevel problem that goes way beyond the microlevel gains that can be achieved by Danica Patrick, Jimmie Johnson or any single driver. However, the NBA grew into the American cultural juggernaut that it is due to individual star power. The lack of individual star power is a major reason why baseball is in such rapid decline.
So NASCAR needs their stars; they need more of them and they need them to shine brighter. Patrick is one of those stars.
“For people who come out to the track, you want them to have a good time and, if you don’t feel like you can help them have a good time, then there’s not much point,” said Danica about the race Sunday.
“But it will be nice to have family and friends out. It’s a little different because I rarely have people at the races with me. It’s nice to see everyone and have their support and hopefully we put on a good show for them.”
Paul M. Banks owns, edits and manages The Sports Bank.net, which is partners with Fox Sports and Yahoo. Read his feature stories in the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. Listen to him Tuesdays on KOZN 1620 The Zone. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)