NASCAR: Five possible Cup Series destinations for Danica Patrick in 2018

With Danica Patrick still not having officially retired from NASCAR Cup Series competition, she still may end up returning to the sport next season after all.

Last month, Danica Patrick announced that the remaining races of the 2017 NASCAR Cup Series season would be the last races during which she would be driving for Stewart-Haas Racing in the #10 Ford, causing much speculation about her future.

However, here we are over a month later with just five races left this season, and Patrick does not yet have a full-time ride lined up for next season in the Cup Series or in any other racing series, but she has yet to officially announce her retirement from racing either. So where will she be next year?

Anything lower than the Cup Series within NASCAR is out of the question. Patrick has said so herself.

"“Cup only…I want to continue racing if I have an opportunity to do well. I have no interest, as I’ve said for years now, to run 25th. It’s not fun. So if I don’t feel like I can have the opportunity to move on from there and have a better opportunity, then honestly I don’t care.”"

And apparently IndyCar, Formula One, and every other racing series out there are out of the question as well, as not only is Patrick limiting her opportunities in NASCAR to the Cup Series, but she is limiting her racing opportunities in general to the Cup Series.

"“If I don’t do Cup, I don’t think I’ll do anything because my only goal is to win in Cup. My goal is to be one of the only drivers to win in Cup and [IndyCar]. So, that’s attained through winning in the Cup Series. If I don’t think there’s a solid potential for that to happen, I’m just spinning my wheels.”"

So what possible options does that leave her with in 2018?