Does riding a Ford driver count?
DANICA PATRICK REACTS TO SHR MOVE TO FORD
Stewart-Haas Racing sent shock waves through NASCAR on Wednesday, announcing an impending change in manufacturers from Chevrolet to Ford starting in 2017.
The move also came as a surprise to fourth-year SHR driver Danica Patrick, who was not privy to negotiations between management and manufacturer, nor was she asked for any input.
"No, that's a team decision and they look out for the well-being of the team and to look out for the longevity as far as not just past this year, but into the future," Patrick told NASCAR.com on Thursday. "Their ultimate goal is getting the cars to be as fast as possible and getting us to Victory Lane and in a position to then win championships.
"They're doing whatever they feel will make that as real as possible. As a driver, I do everything I can to perform on the weekends. I communicate with my crew chief, and keep team morale up and other things, so our jobs are not the same."
SHR has been among the strongest teams on the track in recent years, with championships coming in 2011 (team co-owner Tony Stewart ) and 2014 (Kevin Harvick), along with a total of 30 Sprint Cup Series victories since 2009.
With things seemingly trending up for the organization, Wednesday's news was a surprise to most, especially given the technical alliance SHR has with fellow Chevrolet-backed Hendrick Motorsports, which owns six of the past 10 Cup titles.
Patrick, whose stock car career -- from ARCA and K&N to the Cup Series -- has all been behind the wheel of a Chevrolet, is adopting a team-first attitude, ready to move on to Ford.
"(Driving a Chevy my whole career) is just a matter of what happened," said Patrick. "It's not because I said 'I want to drive a Chevy' or 'I want to drive a Ford' or 'I want to drive a Toyota'. It has nothing to do with that. It's about the team and the people involved and I think that Tony's done a great job of getting people involved that are great and that create successful teams.
"I haven't been involved in a manufacturer change in a team before, so I don’t have experience, but I'm sure the team will do everything they can to minimize any transition time and to only improve performance."
Danica Patrick reacts to SHR move to Ford | NASCAR.com
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