Danica Blames McDowell For Nationwide Crash; He Agrees

Danica Patrick ripped driver Michael McDowell after wrecking out of Saturday afternoon’s Nationwide Series race in Las Vegas.

On lap 83, McDowell had just brought his damaged car back out onto the track when Danica began closing on him at a high rate of speed.

McDowell said he tried to run the low line as a signal to Danica – in stock-car racing, he said, the faster car typically passes on the high side – but Danica dove inside as McDowell tried to come down the track.

The two cars collided, ending both of their days.

“I think the red [repair] tape on the left-rear bumper should have been a big signal for me,” Danica said. “It would have been nice to have a decent finish. … I’m not the type of person that crashes cars.”

McDowell agreed with Danica’s assessment of what happened, saying, “It was completely my fault.”

“It wasn’t the spotter’s fault, nobody’s fault – I’ll take blame for it,” he said. “I apologize. I hope Junior Nation and Danica Mania don’t attack me, because I am big fans [of theirs].

“For me, it was a tough day to go out there and blow a tire. The guys worked really hard to get the car fixed and in three-quarters of a lap, I ran over her pretty good.”

Prior to the wreck, Danica wasn’t running very well. She qualified 37th and had been hanging around 25th – though she said she was getting more and more comfortable.

At one point, leader Kevin Harvick lapped her and gestured – which she took as a signal to follow his line.

Danica said it was “so damn cool” of Harvick to attempt to help her out during the race. She didn’t take his gesture as the middle finger, she said.