We recently noted that Sports Illustrated "airbrushed" Danica Patrick's tattoo, removing it from the small of her back for pictures in their recent Swimsuit Issue.

Patrick's team at the time told us that "Danica is aware of the edits and is comfortable with the final photos."

But we couldn't reach SI for comment as to why they did this.

This afternoon, a spokesperson for the magazine responded.

"The Swimsuit Issue emphasizes natural beauty," the spokesman told CNBC. "The freckles are left on and, in this case, the tattoos came off."

More than 3,300 people voted in a CNBC.com poll asking if they had a problem with the magazine's editing of the race car driver's tattoo. It was close, with 52 percent saying they didn't mind with 48 percent saying they did.

We reported that the tattoo is of an American flag, but Patrick recently told Fanhouse that it's half American flag and half checkered flag. She also said she recently added more including "some angel wings and some stars and stuff."

• Vote For A-Rod's New Nickname

Questions?  Comments? 

POPULAR SPORTS BIZ POSTS

• 

• Could Eli Manning Be A Better Endorser Than Tom Brady? 

• 

• Releasing Ads Before Super Bowl Is A Mistake 

• 

• App Fines You For Missing The Gym 

COMMENTS

More Comments

 

« First | « Previous

Next » | Last »

Thank you for joining our discussion. Your comment has been posted.

ADD COMMENTS

Please Sign In or Register to participate.

In order to add a comment you must click here and accept our terms and conditions.

Edit Screen Name

Please sign-in/optin or register to be able to submit comments.

Remaining characters

CNBC welcomes your contribution. Please respect our community and the integrity of its participants. CNBC reserves the right to moderate and approve your comment.

Sorry, we are no longer accepting comments.

PREVIEW COMMENT

Your comments have not been posted yet.
Please review your submission to make sure you are comfortable with your entry.

Your Comments: