INDIANAPOLIS -- 'Twas interesting they should make such a big deal out of this year's Indy 500 being a race of unification. Chances are Danica Patrick and Ryan Briscoe were not feeling all that unified after the dust and dents cleared here Sunday.
Open-wheel racing is holding hands as one functioning group after 12 years of fussin' and fightin'. You can expect any Patrick-Briscoe future hand-holding to take longer.
Sunday's Hatfield and McCoy moment took place on the 172nd lap of the 200 that constitute this Memorial Day weekend tradition. The 200,000-plus people who came to enjoy the racing, bask in the warm weather and drink lots of beer -- order of importance is anybody's guess -- were gearing up for a great finish to a competitive and interesting race.
Making it even better was that one of their favorites, Patrick, was within striking distance, even though she wasn't making much progress on the leaders and had earlier declared over her radio to her pit crew, "I'm just slow."
She had broken through at Indy in 2005, even led some laps, and had finished all three 500 races she had started. Then, with her cover-girl looks and pleasant personality, her star had rocketed when she won a race in Japan last month, becoming the first woman to win a major open-wheel race.
So, as most of the cars pitted on a yellow caution light, hope was high for her chances to win.
The pit stop was routine, quick. But pit row at Indy is even worse than the 405 Freeway, and when she exited, Briscoe, an Australian driving one of Roger Penske's cars, clipped her on his way out and spun her into the inside pit wall. She came to rest at the end of pit row.
In a sport of massive, frightening crashes, this one was a parking lot fender-bender. But these expensive cars, built to run 230 mph, are also as delicate as an eggshell. Briscoe's little tap knocked several pieces of metal off Patrick's car, including things crucial to speed and steering.
Patrick slammed her fist on the steering wheel, knowing her day was over. The crowd groaned. So did the press room, which had been poised to document the heretofore unheard-of -- a woman winning the Indy 500.
Ah, and what a story it would have been.
She had already achieved rare sports one-name status. Pele. Kobe. Tiger. Danica.
She didn't need to dance with stars. She was one.
