“She surely fits the bill”: When Danica Patrick’s potential F1 bid was supported by Gene Haas

NASCAR and Formula 1 team owner Gene Haas once expressed his confidence in Danica Patrick's potential move to F1. She competed in IndyCar and NASCAR before retiring in 2018.

A trailblazer in the world of motorsports, Patrick remains one of the most iconic drivers among female racers. Having thrived in both NASCAR and IndyCar, she achieved significant milestones in both disciplines. To date, she remains the only female driver to have won an IndyCar race. She also remains the sole woman to have led the Indy 500 and the Daytona 500.

However, despite her accolades, the one series she could never try her hands at was Formula 1. Despite being linked to the sport at multiple junctures of her career, Patrick could never move to F1, spending the majority of her professional racing career within the States.

Patrick came close to a move in 2016, when rumors were rife that the Wisconsin native was moving to Gene Haas' newest racing venture, the Haas F1 team. She was a driver for Stewart-Haas Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series.

In an interview with F1.com in 2014, ahead of Haas F1's debut, Gene Haas reflected on the possibility of Patrick racing in Formula 1. He said:

"Danica Patrick in one of our cars would be the dream driver. She surely fits the bill. She is a woman in a man’s sport - that would attract a lot of attention. She weighs about 50 kilos - which these day sounds fantastic - so indeed she’s got a lot of attributes that would be good to have."

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"Highly marketable": Danica Patrick was Gene Haas' dream pick for his Haas team

In another interview with Reuters in 2016, Haas once again spoke on the possibility of Danica Patrick's move to F1. He said:

"If the right sponsor came along, then anything is possible. We've been down that path last year. We don't want to sit there and say no to anything but the probabilities... obviously when she's in NASCAR, it's very difficult to participate in F1."

Beyond her racing capabilities, Haas branded Patrick as a highly marketable driver, one that'd generate tremendous revenue for any team. Haas noted:

"Danica Patrick is highly marketable and if anything we're very lucky that GoDaddy is giving us enough time to find a sponsor that she'll fit with, because she can sell anything. She has as much attention at the race track as any of the drivers so she's a very valuable person."

However, despite the links, it was Danica Patrick who quashed those rumors of an F1 move, citing age as the driving factor behind her decision. After competing in the sport full-time till 2017, she retired from racing in 2018 after running the Daytona 500 and Indy 500 for one last time.