Sunday, April 20, 2008

Danica Patrick Deserves to be Congratulated!!

I have already seen one Yahoo sports columnist diss Danica Patrick's IndyCar win at Motegi. Because she won a fuel milage race.

Funny; I didn't see a similar column from this yahoo last week when Jimmie Johnson won a fuel milage race.

Will women always face a double-standard in racing? With attitudes like that of writers like Bob Margolis, I guess so. His article at Yahoo was condescending and a backhanded insult to women in racing. Never mind the driver paying her dues, racing full-time, and still being a comparative newcomer. Teaming up with Team Andretti was a terrific move on Danica's part. I dare say if Marco Andretti had won a race on fuel milage, that writer would have been singing a different tune.

How many drivers have scored in a major victory in a major racing league in 50 starts? A lot of NASCAR's 'superstars' are still waiting for that moment in time.

Frankly, however, Margolis' opinion means little -- if anything -- to real race fans who are glad to welcome a new race winner into Victory Lane. I didn't see an article by him condemning the Rick Hendrick Racing Money Machine's win by virtue of 'fuel mileage' at Phoenix.

Congrats, Danica!! I'm glad you haven't let critics like that stand in the way of your racing. The confidence from the first win is something that carries over and helps in future racing. And, they can't take that away from ANY first time race winner.