Patrick, who retired from full-time racing effective at the end of last NASCAR Cup Series season, hoped to run a “Danica Double” in 2018 by racing Ganassi cars in both NASCAR’s and IndyCar’s premier events, but CGR president Steve Lauletta said those cards are now off the table.
“We’re not talking any longer,” Lauletta told Sirius XM NASCAR Radio on Thursday (via USA Today). “I think it would have made sense and we did have conversations if she wanted to run in both races, the Daytona 500 and Indianapolis 500. Ultimately we couldn’t come to a solution that worked for both of us.”
In November, while Chip Ganassi called the potential two-race deal a “fabulous marketing idea” and a “fabulous opportunity,” he acknowledged there were lots of dots to connect to make it happen.
Meanwhile, Lauletta expressed optimism that Patrick may be able to find another ride for the Indy 500 in May.
“Ultimately I think she will,” he said. “She was fairly successful in some of the races she’s run at that place. She knows her way around. There are teams that run just the Indianapolis 500 because of the size of the event itself, so I think they will be able to put something together, and I wish them luck. I think it would be great for the sport of Indy Car racing to have her come back and run in the Indianapolis 500 from an exposure standpoint.”
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