Danica Patrick Becomes First Female Winner In IndyCar History

MOTEGI, Japan — Danica Patrick became the first female winner in IndyCar history Sunday, taking the Indy Japan 300 after the top contenders were forced to pit for fuel in the final laps.

Patrick finished 5.8594 seconds ahead of pole-sitter Helio Castroneves on the 1.5-mile Twin Ring Motegi oval after leader Scott Dixon pitted with five laps left and Dan Wheldon and Tony Kanaan came in a lap later.

"It's a long time coming. Finally," Patrick said. "It was a fuel strategy race, but my team called it perfectly for me. I knew I was on the same strategy as Helio and when I passed him for the lead, I couldn't believe it. This is fabulous."

The 26-year-old Patrick won in her 50th career IndyCar start, taking the lead from Castroneves on the 198th lap in the 200-lap race.

Keep reading here.

Danica Patrick has also posed for several magazines, one of the more famous being the Swimsuit Issue of Sports Illustrated. Scroll down for photos from the shoot.

Comments

[JonGee]

Somewhere in sports heaven, Babe Didrikson is smiling down on Danica Patrick.
Long before Title IX, long before Billie Jean King, long before Nancy Lieberman, there was Babe Didrikson.
Decades before Title IX, Didrikson was performing feats that have yet to be duplicated. She was the ultimate multi-sport athlete, delivering world class performances in basketball, baseball, tennis, track, squash, golf, swimming, diving, skating and even billiards.
She is not only recognized as the greatest all-around woman athlete in history, she is certainly on the very short list of greatest athletes of any gender.
When asked is there was anything she didn't play, Didrikson replied: "Yeah, dolls."

[JumpinJ]

Danica Patrick has proved that a woman can go fast and turn left... and turn left... and turn left. Probably left her turn signal on too. Nice work, Danica. Now git me my beer.

[FADUTA]

I am betting you get your own beers, always have, always well.

[iamvalid]

Yea! You Go Girl...

[alwaysthere]

wait a minute
whats going on here
first, women realize we will pay 4,500 an hour to have sex
and now they can drive faster than us
don't suppose thats how religion began do you

ya see honey it's all eye's fault !

jesus, they're on to us !!

[barrista]

take it all in ladies, this is as much female trailblazing as you'll get this year because Hillary sure ain't breaking through to the presidency.

[aceholiday]

its a good day

[RobertAndropolis]

This is one helluva vote of confidence from owner to driver. This racing environment is volatile, where teams try to find the right driver, the right chemistry, the rigt one who will mesh with their team productively. Mr. Andretti is clearly and rightly over the moon at his driver and his team. Ms. Patrick has brought a lot of class to this sport. She has exhibited unwavering confidence since coming into IndyCar racing, and manages to do so without being conceited; in fact, if anything she has been self-effacing and modest (unlike many of her male racing brethern in general, who like to assess blame to whoever they crashed with). She actually takes time to thoughtfully answer the commentators questions, instead of just talking in cliches and thanking her tire supplier, and in so doing brings the fan closer into the sensory feast that is IndyCar racing. To watch her talk about her profession--it's not just when she wins--she radiates genuine, unforced passion that is inspiring.

She stands unique in the profile of the racer not only in her gender, but in her charismatic, honest personality. We must not undervalue just how significant and powerfully symbolic breaking through that glass ceiling was for her, for her owner, for all of the people comprising Team Andretti Green. And us. Thank you Danica. You inspire by example, so we feel then that we all might be the best that we can be.

Obama/Danica'08..!

[Mort]

I wonder if GoDaddy will have to raise their rates now to keep her endorsement.

[SweetAngie]

Danica for President !

[ScandalousLibertine]

Danica Patrick is NOT the first woman to win:

Maybe Katherine Legge was and is still ignored in this horny-male hard-on for cover girls dominated news media because: Legge is not very "pretty" and she didn"t do any swim suit modeling?

In 2005, Katherine Legge competed in the Toyota Atlantic Championship (Indy-type cars). Legge won the series opener at Long Beach in her first career Toyota Atlantic start. In doing so, Legge became the first woman to win a major open-wheel race in North America. Legge went on to win her second and third races of the season at Edmonton and San Jose. She finished the season 3rd in the championship with three wins and five podiums.

Give Katherine Legge some credit! Legge did what Janet Guthrie never did. She won!

Check it out on Wiki.

[rektruax]

"Check it out on Wiki."

I did. What's wrong with the way she looks?

[sarasson]

Toyota Atlantic is not a major racing series. It is a support class series. Just sayin, there is a distinction to be made.

[Sp8z]

Toyota Atlantic Championship (Indy-type cars)
Yes and T-ball is the same as major league Baseball (they both use a ball and a bat)
Danica won in (Indy-type cars) years ago

[Beaux510]

Katherine isn't bad looking, kinda nerdy-cool, and man she was good.

[ceasenake]

A yummy race car driver, who'd a thunk?

[mdceg1]

Would anyone care at all if she weren't pretty, thin, and white?

[rektruax]

Uh... Yes!

Way to introduce non-issues though.

[Beaux510]

Sarah Fisher (not pretty or thin) has raced in the IRL for years and has always made news, and landed sponsorship without winning anything. The Danica machine has definitely made the most of her looks, but honestly, she's a rocket of a driver. That's a very small club up there at the front with Kanaan, Castroneves, Dixon, Wheldon etc, and there are plenty of male drivers who never even get close. Just ask AJ Foyt IV, Ed Carpenter, Hideki Mutoh, Kosuke Matusura, Milka Duno (another woman, Venezuealan and hot), Marty Roth, Jay Howard, etc.

Motor racing is the one sporting endeavor where women get to compete on a level playing field and are not relegated to Women's leagues. Fast is fast, if you are then gender doesn't matter.

I am also an amatuer racer and some of my best races came where I was trying to catch Shelly Russell in her immaculate Alfa Spyder. I only ever caught her once.

[kardwell]

This story isn't irrelevant nor frivolous -- another awesome woman breaks through to win in a male dominated sport. Excellent news!
Congratulations Danica Patrick! Way to go!

[DatelessNerd]

That's great news for Danica AND the sport of Indy Car racing!

Danica Patrick is no gimmick, unlike some other attractive female athletes -- which makes Danica ten times hotter!

[in4success]

now THIS is a woman i would vote for, for POTUS

[InofTouch]

I just laugh at the extra attention the HuffPost posted in this story...so apprently you useing the ABC debate playbook