Danica Sue Patrick (born March 25, 1982) is an American former professional racing driver who competed in the IndyCar Series from 2005 to 2011 and the NASCAR Cup Series from 2012 to 2018. She is the most successful woman in the history of American open-wheel car racing—her victory in the 2008 Indy Japan 300 is the only win by a woman in IndyCar.
Born to a working-class family in Beloit, Wisconsin, Patrick began karting at the age of ten. She achieved early success by winning her class in the World Karting Association Grand National Championship three times in the mid-1990s. She dropped out of high school with her parents' permission in 1998, and moved to the United Kingdom to further her career. Patrick competed in Formula Vauxhall and Formula Ford before returning to the United States in 2001 due to a lack of funding. In 2002, she competed in five Barber Dodge Pro Series races for Rahal Letterman Racing. Patrick raced in the Toyota Atlantic Series for the next two years. Her best effort was third in the championship standings for the 2004 season where she became the first woman to win a pole position in the series.
Patrick first drove in the IndyCar Series with Rahal Letterman Racing in 2005 and took three pole positions, equaling Tomas Scheckter's record of poles in a rookie season. She was named the Rookie of the Year for both the 2005 Indianapolis 500 and the 2005 IndyCar Series. She improved over the next two years with Rahal Letterman Racing in 2006 and later Andretti Green Racing in 2007. In 2008, Patrick followed up her Japan victory to place sixth overall in the drivers' standings. She placed fifth the following season, which saw her finish a career-high third at the Indianapolis 500, the best performance by any woman at the race. Patrick's overall form declined during 2010, but she still managed two second places at oval tracks before leaving IndyCar after the 2011 season to focus on stock car racing full-time.
Patrick began racing stock cars in 2010 in the NASCAR Nationwide Series (now NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series) with her best result being a fourth-place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2011. She placed a career-high tenth in the 2012 season standings and was the second woman to clinch a pole position in the Nationwide Series after Shawna Robinson in 1994. Patrick started in the Sprint Cup Series (now NASCAR Cup Series) in 2012. She became the first woman to win a Cup Series pole position by setting the fastest qualifying lap for the 2013 Daytona 500, finishing eighth. Patrick bested Janet Guthrie's record for the most top-ten finishes by a woman in the Sprint Cup Series in 2015. She stopped racing full-time after the 2017 season, but competed at the 2018 Daytona 500 and the 2018 Indianapolis 500 before officially retiring.
Patrick was born on March 25, 1982, in Beloit, Wisconsin. She is the daughter of working-class parents Beverly Ann (née Flaten) and Terry Joseph "T. J." Patrick Jr. Over the years, the couple has owned a coffee shop and a glass company. Patrick has a younger sister. She is half Norwegian, as well as part Irish, French-Canadian, Italian, and Native American. Patrick was raised in Roscoe, Illinois.
Patrick was a cheerleader at Hononegah Community High School in nearby Rockton in 1996. She spent her off-time babysitting for a nearby family when she was not racing. Initially she had no interest in racing, and thought of a career as a secretary, a singer, or a veterinarian. The sisters told their parents of their wish to race go-karts after a friend of Brooke's allowed her to drive one. They were each given a go-kart.
Patrick began karting at Sugar River Raceway in Brodhead, Wisconsin. Her father acted as her crew chief and her mother kept statistics on her racing. Patrick had no role models or idols; she was never "striving to achieve female goals", but aspired to "be the best [she] could be." Patrick's first time driving a go-kart ended when, running practice laps, she crashed into a concrete wall at 25 mph (40 km/h) due to a brake failure. She was not injured. Patrick finished second out of twenty drivers at the year's end after a twenty-two race schedule. She gradually improved her eye to foot coordination, allowing her to set numerous age-specific track records at Sugar River Raceway and Michiana Raceway Park. Along with her interest in kart racing, Patrick dabbled in snowmobiles, motocross, and midget car racing.
At age 13, Patrick asked her parents about moving to California so she could compete throughout the year; they declined, citing business commitments. Nevertheless, she ventured across much of the Midwestern United States, and the rest of the country, to enable her to race. To help defray travel expenses, the family sold merchandise featuring Patrick and imposed a rule that prevented her from undertaking activities that would harm her public image. She won ten regional karting titles, and the World Karting Association Grand National Championship in the Yamaha Sportsman, and later HPV class three times: in 1994, 1996 and 1997.
Patrick was accepted into the Indianapolis-based Lyn St. James Foundation Driver Development Program in 1996. She was taught auto racing's business structure, and her driving abilities were further refined. Her father often contacted newspapers to chronicle his daughter's performance. Additionally, ABC and MTV ran television segments on Patrick in 1997. This exposure led to her being hired by John Mecom Jr. (introduced to Patrick by St. James two years earlier) to compete in the United Kingdom racing circuit. Patrick and her father visited Mecom's family, who agreed to sponsor her on the condition she was sent to a high-quality driving school for further refinement of her racing abilities. She ended up attending three driving schools, including Track Speed School at Sebring International Raceway and the Formula Ford driving school. Patrick later competed in a Sports Car Club of America race at Daytona International Speedway in May 1998.
Patrick's parents consented to her dropping out of high school midway through her junior year in 1998, and obtaining a GED certification. She moved by herself to England to advance her racing career and resided in the Buckinghamshire town of Milton Keynes. Three-time Formula One world champion Jackie Stewart helped Patrick and she socialized with drivers such as Jenson Button. Patrick received some financial backing from the Ford Motor Company; she later lost Mecom's support after one season following rumors that she was living an extravagant lifestyle. She successfully persuaded her father to underwrite her career.
During the three years Patrick spent in the United Kingdom, Patrick raced in Formula Vauxhall and Formula Ford, coming ninth in points in the 1999 British Formula Vauxhall Championship. She competed for Haywood Racing in Formula Ford and was Mygale's lead test driver. Patrick was uncompetitive in Formula Ford, claiming the equipment she received was of poor quality. Nevertheless, she came second in the 2000 Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch with Haywood Racing, tying Danny Sullivan's best performance by an American in the event. This led to her receiving a Formula Three test with Carlin in 2001. Jaguar Racing team principal Bobby Rahal organized a second test for her with the expectation it would lead to her being put in the Paul Stewart Racing development program; it was cancelled in mid-2001, after new owner Niki Lauda fired Rahal. That year, she was awarded the Gorsline Scholarship Award as the most aspiring road course competitor, and was recognized as the top female open wheel race car driver with experience on the international scene.
Patrick had a difficult season as her Mygale cars did not suit her smooth driving style, and she was outpaced by her teammates. Ford later terminated her program as they suspected the capital they gave her was being misused and felt she was not getting enough technical support. Patrick returned to the United States later that year after her funding dried up. She began negotiations to drive a BMW M3 for Team PTG in the American Le Mans Series in 2002, which ended when BMW withdrew over a technological dispute. Her 2002 campaign began with the fund-raising Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race, where she defeated Tommy Kendall to win the professional class, and placed third overall. Patrick and her father travelled to race tracks on weekends with expectations of her being hired by a team owner. She spoke to Rahal about a race seat in June that year; he signed her to a three-year contract at Milwaukee Mile. That month, Patrick tested the ppc Racing Ford Taurus NASCAR Busch Series car in a two-day test session at Greenville-Pickens Speedway.