Danica Patrick won’t appear nude in ESPN’s Body Issue now, but maybe someday

ESPN's "The Body" issue is now on newsstands, showcasing some of sports' most popular athletes wearing nothing but a smile. And so it stands to reason that Danica Patrick, one of motorsports' biggest draws, might bare all for a magazine, yes?

Don't hold your breath. While Patrick says she's been asked every year, she's nowhere close to accepting. “I just never felt like that was something I needed or wanted to do," she said in her press conference in advance of New Hampshire's race this weekend. "A lot of the stuff that I’ve done that has been scantily clad has all been swimsuit stuff."

Yes, you say, but what's the difference between wearing a bikini and, well, taking it all off for some artistic poses? "There’s a difference to me between going to the beach and wearing a swimming suit and going to the beach and wearing nothing or paint," Patrick said. "That’s just pushing the limit a little bit ... There’s already enough stuff that I do that pushes that. So, I’d rather stay in my full comfort zone than go that far."

But take heart, Danica fans; there's always the chance you might see her sans firesuit. "I’m not saying there will never be a day," she said. "When I speak to them and they ask me each time I say, 'Don’t stop asking. I don’t know. I might change my mind one year. And it might be something that parallels something else I’m doing, or where I’m at, or how I’m feeling.' But just not right now."

Meantime, you'll have to content yourself with this year's issue, which features, well, pictures of a naked 77-year-old man.