There were still a few pint-sized fans decked out in “vintage” Danica Patrick dayglo-green gear, but the usual, massive and vocal concentration of supporters behind the Go.Daddy.com pit was noticeably gone during this past weekend’s IZOD IndyCar Series season-opener in St. Petersburg. Still, vendors insisted Patrick’s old IndyCar merchandise was outselling anyone else despite her recent “defection” to NASCAR. “They’re collector’s editions now,’’ the manager of one large souvenir trailer on the midway said with a grin. “But, Marco (Andretti) is starting to pick up and Dario (Franchitti) and Helio (Castroneves).’’ James Hinchcliffe, the young Canadian who succeeded the late Dan Wheldon’s planned replacement of Patrick in the Andretti Autosport Go.Daddy car, joked that he would not be wearing a bikini in the company’s notoriously racy advertisements. He did, however, wear a long black wig when he was introduced before the race, referring to himself as “Man-ica.” “For me, here at the first race, there’s been a lot of ‘Hey Danica,’ but it’s all in good fun,’’ Hinchcliffe said. “I certainly appreciate that I’m stepping into a pretty visible ride from a woman that did a lot for our sport and was a very public figure.” That’s about as generous… Read full this story
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