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Does Danica Patrick’s lighter weight give her an advantage at Daytona? Published Thursday, Feb 21, 2013 at 11:19 am EST DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Danica Patrick, likely the lightest Sprint Cup driver, drives a car that might be 30 pounds or so lighter than most of her competition. The lighter weight could give Patrick an advantage by allowing her team to redistribute weight in other areas of the car. But it doesn’t sound like competitors or NASCAR officials are fretting about it all that much. While there was some speculation in social media that having a lightweight driver could be a benefit, NASCAR officials dismissed that theory as a reason why she won the pole for the Daytona 500. NASCAR bases its cars on a 180-pound driver. If the driver is 180 pounds or more, the car must weigh 3,300. A driver who weighs 170-179 pounds must add 10 pounds to the car, while a driver 160-169 pounds must add 20, a driver 150-159 pounds must add 30 and any driver under 150 pounds must add 40. Patrick, whose weight is estimated between 100 and 110 pounds, therefore drives a car at least 30 pounds lighter than most of the other drivers. Mark Martin, the lightest male driver, weighs around 130 pounds. “You can’t keep chasing something that has minimal effect,” NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said about the 40-pound maximum weight added to Patrick’s car. “We want to keep the cars as light as we can anyways. We’re working in that direction. “For her having any type of advantage, Daytona and Talladega is probably the least advantage it could ever have. Her being 30 or 40 pounds lighter at some other place, maybe you could argue that. But I think some people are chasing ghosts or goblins.” MORE: Duel 1 recap, results | Duel 2 recap, results | Danica's day | Lap-by-lap analysis Patrick crew chief Tony Gibson dismissed the talk. “To be honest with you, I’d want a fatter driver,” said Gibson, who worked with stocky Ryan Newman, one of the heaviest drivers, the past few years. “The bigger driver, the weight is behind the center cross member and it helps compress the rear springs more. You’re getting that much weight behind and it’s really an advantage on the restrictor-plate (tracks) to have a bigger driver.” You can really tell how small Danica Patrick is as she stands next to her team owner, Tony Stewart. (NASCAR Media Photo) It could make more of a difference at a short track like Martinsville or New Hampshire, Pemberton said. Former Cup crew chief Andy Petree, now an ESPN analyst, said it might help most on a road course. “We have qualified heavy here,” Petree said about his crew chief days. “You always think lighter is better. This kind of thing, I just don’t think it matters. “Where it could matter is at a road course because the driver sits on the left side and the cars turn to the right. That’s the one place it could be the most advantage—it’s still not going to be great (but) maybe you could measure it there.” The weight is added to the frame rails. “The rails are only so long—I can only put so much in certain places,” Gibson said. “I end up filling the rail up and I can’t move (the weight around).” Former Cup champion Brad Keselowski agreed with Gibson’s theory that heavier is better. In a couple of tweets Sunday, he said: “Lighter cars at super speedways= disadvantage. Everywhere else- advantage. Look for conspiracies some where else pls. … Lower cars run better at super speedways because the spoiler is outta the air. Heights for inspection are measured w/o driver.” A couple of Cup champions dismissed the issue Wednesday, even if there could be something to the theory. “The old saying was always, 'Light, low and left,’” said 2003 Cup champion Matt Kenseth. “You want to build the cars as light as you can—there's always a weight rule so whatever weight you put in there, you want to get as low as you can to get your center of gravity as low as you can. “If you're lighter, even if you have to add weight, you can add weight where you want it in the car and if you're shorter then you're sitting lower in the car and all that stuff helps of course. It's always been like that.” Kenseth, though, quipped: “I don't think it's a huge deal. But yes, if she keeps running that fast, then I think she should have to add a bunch of weight and mount it to the roof." Patrick would have had a bigger advantage last year, when the driver’s weight was based on 200 pounds and no more than 50 pounds could be added. “They adjust it and they put weight on cars where you have lighter drivers so it all balances out,” said five-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson. Pemberton said the rule was changed from a 200-pound driver to an 180-pound driver this year because the drivers have become lighter in recent years. “When you are trying to race anything, there is a balance between the weight you need and whether it’s a balance of the left-side weight or overall weight, and when you go to a place such as Daytona, it probably means less than any place you go,” Pemberton said.