Patrick tops the list of new Nationwide faces in 2010 (cont'd)

• Rusty Wallace Racing has two new crew chiefs for its full-time Nationwide entries as it switches to its first season running Toyotas after previously fielding Chevys. Crew chief Dale Ferguson will be atop the pit box for the No. 66 driven by Rusty's son, Steve, who finished sixth in points last season; crew chief Bryan Berry will be making the calls for the No. 62 car driven by Brendan Gaughan, who was ninth in points in 2009.

• Cup veteran Scott Riggs will start the season with RAB Racing in the No. 09 Ford, running at least the season opener at Daytona with hopes for finding the funding to run a full schedule.

Townley

• James Buescher, who competed full-time on the Truck Series and finished 14th in points last year, will attempt to run again both in that series and in a full-time Nationwide ride with Phoenix Racing.

• Diamond-Waltrip Racing was formed with the specific idea of putting driver Trevor Bayne in a full-time ride.

• Michael McDowell, a former Michael Waltrip Racing developmental driver, will drive the No. 81 Dodge for MacDonald Motorsports.

• Parker Kligerman, the 19-year-old developmental driver in the Penske Racing fold, will be farmed out to run at least five races in the No. 42 Dodge for Team 42 Racing, owned by Eddie Smith.

• John Wes Townley is moving to Richard Childress Racing and bringing sponsorship dollars with him, which may be needed to keep the No. 21 Chevy running if he continues to smack his car into as many walls as he did a year ago.

But despite all the different faces in different places, the most discerning eyes to fall on the Nationwide Series in 2010 will be during those races in which Danica Patrick runs. Among the most watchful will be Cup driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., who owns JR Motorsports along with his sister Kelley, who runs the family operation along with the Earnhardts' cousin, Tony Eury Jr. Not coincidentally, Eury Jr. will serve as Patrick's Nationwide crew chief.

Patrick and Eury jr.

“

She will have excellent equipment. Tony Jr. is a lot of talent. He'll give her a very comfortable car, so she won't have to doubt her equipment.

”

-- DALE EARNHARDT JR.

"She will have excellent equipment. Tony Jr. is a lot of talent. He'll give her a very comfortable car, so she won't have to doubt her equipment," Dale Jr. said.

Kelley Earnhardt added that she already has been impressed with the way Patrick handles herself on and off the track.

"I can't say I came into this having a particular perception of her," Kelley Earnhardt said. "What I've found her to be is really down to earth. You never know what to expect when you're dealing with someone who is really popular -- you can get the Kyle Busch attitude or the Dale Junior attitude or the Jeff Gordon attitude. You just never know what you're going to get.

"I'm pleased because I think she's a real good fit for JR Motorsports. She fell right in here with our guys, cuttin' up and talking. She's very dedicated to giving it whatever she needs to perform. I think that's all you can ask for, especially with the schedule she's going to keep with the Indy cars and her coming and going with our company and our series. I've been very pleased with that. She's very open to everything."

And Eury Jr. said Patrick already has displayed some serious skills during testing.

"For her to come over here with a car that probably weighs twice as much as what she's got [in the IndyCar Series], and has twice the downforce, it's a challenge," admitted Eury Jr., who a year ago at this time was preparing for the Sprint Cup season as crew chief for Earnhardt's No. 88 Chevy. "That's one of the things we asked her about the difference in acceleration between this car and her Indy car, and she said there really isn't that much difference. But she says in an Indy car, the faster you go, the more comfortable you are; in these cars, the faster you go, the more uncomfortable you are.

"It's going to be a big learning curve for both of us, but we'll have a good time with it."