Dario Franchitti, the two-time Indianapolis 500 winner and four-time series champion, artfully evaded questions about the departure of Patrick, his teammate for three years.
"There's been no impact," said Franchitti. "It's not affecting me on or off the track, no."
But IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard felt different about Patrick's impact on Franchitti – thes port's most accomplished driver in the last decade.
"I did think she was an umbrella that took the spotlight off of drivers like Dario," Bernard said. "He's going to finish his career right there with Mario Andretti, Michael Andretti, Bobby Unser, Al Unser and Rick Mears. We have this great legend that doesn't resonate with fans to the amount of his credibility."GoDaddy
That's not to say Bernard wasn't a bit uneasy to start the season without Patrick, the first woman to lead a lap at Indianapolis.
"At the beginning of the season, you scratch your head and think, 'Geez, I hope everything we've been saying about Patrick's departure is going to be true," said Bernard. "But we've seen double-digit growth on all of the races so far, so I think that's a real big positive."
IndyCar avoided a substantial loss from Patrick's departure when sponsor GoDaddy opted to stay in the sport as a primary sponsor at Andretti Autosport and as a series sponsor. Bernard thinks retaining the web domain company known for it's racy television with Patrick may be more important.
"There's been no impact," said Franchitti. "It's not affecting me on or off the track, no."
But IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard felt different about Patrick's impact on Franchitti – thes port's most accomplished driver in the last decade.
"I did think she was an umbrella that took the spotlight off of drivers like Dario," Bernard said. "He's going to finish his career right there with Mario Andretti, Michael Andretti, Bobby Unser, Al Unser and Rick Mears. We have this great legend that doesn't resonate with fans to the amount of his credibility."GoDaddy
That's not to say Bernard wasn't a bit uneasy to start the season without Patrick, the first woman to lead a lap at Indianapolis.
"At the beginning of the season, you scratch your head and think, 'Geez, I hope everything we've been saying about Patrick's departure is going to be true," said Bernard. "But we've seen double-digit growth on all of the races so far, so I think that's a real big positive."
IndyCar avoided a substantial loss from Patrick's departure when sponsor GoDaddy opted to stay in the sport as a primary sponsor at Andretti Autosport and as a series sponsor. Bernard thinks retaining the web domain company known for it's racy television with Patrick may be more important.
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