Bell sponsored drivers Danica Patrick has decided to run the NASCAR Nationwide race at Daytona after an impressive 6th place finish in Saturday’s ARCA race. "I bumped from the side. I bumped from the front. I got bumped from the back. I learned a lot, and I had so much fun in a race car [Saturday]. So I can't wait to do it again," Patrick said.
Patrick started 12th in the ARCA race and had moved as high at 6th place when contact with Nelson Piquet Jr. on Lap 54 sent her spinning into the infield. After restarting in 24th and charging through the field in the final 17 laps, Patrick earned high praise from her JR Motorsports team.
"You drove the wheels off that thing, girl," radioed co-owner Rick Hendrick. "We're proud of you." Patrick replied, "Thank you very much." "That was fun -- that was a good time," Patrick radioed to crew chief Tony Eury Jr. "I definitely learned a lot. But I felt what it was like to have the tires go off. That was a handful."After climbing from her car, Patrick looked at the battle scars on her No. 7 Chevrolet. "I was pretty excited to go from last back to the top five again," she said. "It was really fun. I was going side-by-side with people. The GoDaddy car doesn't look very pretty, but it was fun."
After the ARCA race, Patrick, Dale Earnhardt and JRM team officials made the decision to have Patrick compete in the Daytona NASCAR Nationwide Series race next weekend. "To be the one driving that Go Daddy car at Daytona means a lot to me," Patrick said. "Racing in the Nationwide Series race was my goal during this entire two-month preparation process, but we wanted to make sure it was the right thing to do. The ARCA race was a blast, and I'm not ready for my first Daytona Speedweeks to end just yet. I want more racing."

Patrick's entry in the Drive4COPD 300 puts her in a JR Motorsports tandem with Dale Earnhardt Jr., who will drive the No. 88 Chevrolet. Patrick will continue her Nationwide Series schedule on Feb. 20 at Auto Club Speedway and Feb. 27 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
"I think Danica proved to everyone that she can compete in stock cars at a high level, and right now seat time is extremely important," Kelley Earnhardt said. "She has worked extremely hard during the past two months for this opportunity. Her dedication and work ethic is infectious.”
Danica Patrick wears the Bell Infusion Top Forced Air helmet in NASCAR competition.