Danica Patrick is no stranger to the racing world. She made history by being the first woman to bag a win in the IndyCar Series. Despite her sixth-place start at Indy 500 Japan in 2008, she charged ahead and emerged victorious. While her racing career has broken all boundaries, the same cannot be said about her commentary career! 

A myriad of controversial statements and odd behavior later, fans of NASCAR and F1 have both arguably turned bitterly toward her. And when NBC announced to feature Danica Patrick in their Indy 500 coverage, the fans were livid. 

Danica Patrick’s Controversial Commentary Career

When NBC announced ahead of the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500 that Danica Patrick, alongside host Mike Tirico, will cover the event, it sparked fury. But why? This is because Danica Patrick has her fair share of controversy, not just in NASCAR but in the F1 community, too.

Ever since she retired in 2018, she has focused on sports commentary, but unlike her car, her commentary didn’t land on the victory lane!

At the Hungarian Grand Prix, Patrick being a female driver herself, said, “I think that the nature of the sport is masculine. It’s aggressive.” This didn’t sit well with fans as they thought that being a female herself, that statement reeked “hypocritical” and discouraged young girls who wanted to join the sport in the future. 

There was also another scenario where fans labeled her “out of touch from reality” after the Las Vegas Grand Prix. The fans were forced to leave an event ahead of the FP2 race because of a logistical issue. A loose drain caused damage to Carlos Sainz’s car and pushed the race back by two and a half hours. Acting as a Sky Sports pundit, she said fans should have just got the tickets for the entire weekend. She said, “Maybe it’ll drive them to get tickets for next year so that they can see the whole thing or buy a whole weekend pass.” This comment just showed fans how out of touch she was with the financial and logistical realities faced by fans to watch these races.

She has commented on more jarring things, from climate change to someone’s passing leading to fans of both NASCAR and F1 being bitter towards her. So her joining the commentary podium isn’t crystallizing well with NASCAR fans and they have not hesitated to show their emotions on social media.

NASCAR fans react to Danica Patrick’s commentary comeback 

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Watching sports is an amazing experience. And watching sports with great commentary makes it even better. But fans don’t believe that Danica Patrick can provide an enjoyable experience. Moreover, the 2024 Indy-Charlotte Memorial Double is going to be extra special this year. This is because Kyle Larson is attempting the “Double Duty!” 

Fans took to Instagram and didn’t hesitate to share their emotions.

One user commented, “Get Danica outta here bruh.” Another user just couldn’t understand why NBC had to bring the duo in replacing the ones who were already there. He said, “For the life of me I don’t understand why NBC brings this crew in. Hinch, Townsend, and Duffey are SOOO good all season long and they actually know what they’re talking about. It’s frustrating when they take away from the race to let these two talk.”

One fan couldn’t help but plead to F1 to keep Danica busy with their commentary and spare NASCAR. He said, “Dear Indycar, on behalf of all F1 fans, please keep Danica and do not return her for the love of all things good on this earth keep her.”

Another NASCAR fan said he will probably mute the TV when the race is on saying, “NOT………HER AGAIN !! Oh well……WATCH with NO SOUND, AGAIN !!!” Another user gave out a funny statement comparing her with a dry paint sound. He said, ‘Why would any network hire her. If paint drying had a sound, Danica is it. Painful.”

It is evident that her skills as a commentator and her ideals are controversial to many. But what do you think? Was the decision to bring her in a smart move by NBC?