He was a great influence on Nascar.
She is a great influence on fans.
He won races as a mechanic, a crew chief, engineer, and team owner.
She brought a new generation of fans to the races, and helped extend the profitable age of Nascar racing. She never had a top 5 finish, in 191 races.
However
He pissed of the France family in perpetuity
She led laps in the Indy 500 and the Daytona 500, the only woman to do so. Simply, there aren't many women who have ever raced in either. Danica crashed out in both. Never lived up to the hype.
But no one brought more eyeballs to the sport in the last 7 years. She was featured prominently in all Nascar marketing they could use her image in. Not because she won, or competed fiercely.
So, if I were a gambler, I'd say that she's going to the Nascar Hall of Fame before Smokey
She was great for the sport's profits. That's the only reason the Nascar exists. Profits.
Banjo Matthews, Humpy Wheeler, Bill Rexford, haven't gotten in yet
Ken Squier is in already. Who the hell is he? Don't know, don't care. The point is, he's in, and Smokey isn't. Banjo isn't. Humpy isn't. Get what I'm saying. The fix is in.
It's a hall of
FAME and not of merit. So, is there any reason to be upset? Probably not.
the NASCAR Hall of Fame has a voting panel of 53 people, they induct five people per year.
Autoweek article June 18 2018 issue, page 46
https://www.denverpost.com/2018/05/23/is-danica-patrick-nascar-hall-of-famer/
For a more technical look at some of the nominees:
• From the 1950 Southern 500 to still racing at age 90, Hershel McGriff exhibited a competitive passion that lasted longer than any driver in NASCAR history.
• With nine NASCAR championships to his name, Mike Stefanik remains one of the greatest to ever drive in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour.
• No one is quite sure how many times Larry Phillips won, but a crew chief estimated he won 1,000 times; maybe 2,000. That’s a lot of Victory Lane celebrations.
• Ray Fox not only served in the U.S. Army during World War II, his strong mechanical work on engines led several drivers, such as Junior Johnson, to big wins.
• Known as NASCAR’s Ironman for more than a decade, Ricky Rudd held the premier series record for consecutive starts (788) until 2015.
• Known as a master motivator, Joe Gibbs’ 150-plus premier series owner wins and four premier series titles rank among the sport’s most elite company.
• For Massachusetts native Ralph Moody, it all started with a Model T Ford he built in 1935 and raced on nights and weekends.
• John Holman was considered the mastermind salesman and business manager of the famed Holman-Moody ownership duo.
https://www.nascar.com/news-media/2018/05/23/2019-nascar-hall-fame-everything-need-know/ gives a much longer look at each of the above, and many more
