Indy Car Star Danica Patrick Apologizes for Bad Joke on PEDs

Athletes using steroids and other illegal performance-enhancing drugs are a serious issue and not something to joke about. The dynamic Go Daddy Girl, Danica Patrick, recently tried to pass off an ill-conceived comment about drug use and conceived it as a whole problem with the athletic/drug culture. In a radio interview, Patrick said that she would use performance-enhancing drugs if she knew she would not get caught. Patrick, who finished third at Indy last month, said, “Well, then it’s not cheating, is it? If nobody finds out?” “Yeah,” she added. “It would be like finding a gray area. In motorsports, we work in gray areas a lot. You’re trying to find where the holes are in the rule book”

After everything was said, Patrick was criticized by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart, who said that Patrick had “undercut what millions of parents try best to teach their kids every day in this country, that winners never cheat and cheaters never win.” However, in an interview with USA Today, she said that her answer was a “bad joke.” “It was just a joke and I really apologize if it came across the other way. It was a bad joke. There is a lot of sensitivity in our culture about [performance-enhancing drugs]. It’s a shame kids think they have to do this to get ahead. It’s very dangerous… It’s absolutely not what I’m about.”

Patrick is considered as the most popular face in Indy car today so she should have known better. Her statement was in fact irresponsible. Steroids are high on the list of the scorns in the society and Patrick made a calculated mistake by leaving an iota of doubt to the minds of fans that might consider performance-enhancing drugs to do better in sports.

Danica Patrick’s publicist, Lewis Kay, told The Associated Press that the Indy Car star felt she had “addressed the matter thoroughly with her comments to USA Today.” Her contract with Andretti Green Racing expires after this year and there are speculations on the possibility that she may move to NASCAR or Formula One. “I’m being asked about it,” Patrick said about leaving the IRL. “I’m not bringing it up. I’m not slipping it into conversations, ‘Well, you know it’s my contract year.’ I’m being honest. I’m going to check it all out. I guess I’m being more honest about it than I was last time. I’m also more open to it than I was last time.”

Meanwhile, NASCAR is taking a more active approach against drugs in the garage. Six crew members and driver Jeremy Mayfield have faced suspension since NASCAR started its random drug test this year. Tygart on the other hand, is glad that Patrick apologized for her comments. “Although joking about the use of dangerous and unhealthy drugs that cheaters use to rob clean athletes of their dreams is no laughing matter,” he said.

With her provocative commercials for GoDaddy.com and SI Swimsuit appearances, Patrick’s popularity is undoubtedly high. She even ranks as the most searched female athletes in the world and is the most popular driver in the IndyCar Series.