When it comes to polarizing athletes, Danica Patrick is probably ranked with Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow in a category all their own.
So it's not surprising that not everyone in NASCAR is smitten by the news Patrick is expected to run a full 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series and partial Cup Series schedule next season. She would run a full-time Nationwide Series schedule with JR Motorsports and a handful of Sprint Cup races with the team owned by Tony Stewart.
"She is not ready for Cup," Speed analyst Kyle Petty said. "End of the conversation. The first year she ran, it was all marketing all the time. This year she has made a tremendous improvement. I give her kudos for the races she has run and how she has done. She has made a huge jump from year one to year two.
"She still hasn't beaten Stewart and Kyle Busch and Joey Logano and guys like that. When you get to the Cup level, those are guys who are there. You have to race against those guys week in and week out."