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Danica Patrick, the first female racer to ever lead the Indianapolis 500, could follow Formula One star Juan Pablo Montoya into stock car racing, according to reports on Monday.
Just a day after Colombian driver Montoya announced his 2007 leap from F1 to the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), 24-year-old Indy Racing League star Patrick appeared set to defect too.
"I'm trying to get her here (into NASCAR)," T.J. Patrick, his daughter's manager since childhood, told the Orlando Sentinel newspaper.
Patrick was a late leader at the 2005 Indy 500 before England's Dan Wheldon won the race.
Since then she has captured attention but has been unable to recapture the magic of her Indy low-fuel run and actually win a race in the mostly oval series.
The elder Patrick was at a NASCAR race in suburban Chicago on Sunday talking to potential teams and sponsors about having his daughter make the jump in time for next season.
"We've had some inquiries," he told the newspaper.
Patrick's contract with Indy-car's Rahal-Letterman team expires after this season. Talks are being conducted with IRL rivals as well.
NASCAR star Tony Stewart is among several drivers to ditch Indy-car for NASCAR, the closed-cockpit and primarily oval form of racing, that is the most popular format among US supporters.
NASCAR stages 36 races in a season compared for 14 this year for the IRL.
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AFP 101730 GMT 07 06
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