Danica

Danica Sue Patrick is an American former professional racer. She is the most successful American female open-wheel racing driver. Her win at the Indy Japan 300 in 2008 was her first major win. In 1998, she quit high school and moved into England to pursue a career. Patrick participated in Formula Vauxhall and Formula Ford before returning to the United States in 2001 due to a lack in funding. She competed in five Barber Dodge Pro Series races in 2002 for Rahal Letterman Racing. Patrick was later a part of the Toyota Atlantic Series for the next two years. Her best performance was when she finished third in championship standings for the 2004 season when she became the first female to take a pole in the series.She first drove in the IndyCar Series with Rahal Letterman Racing in 2005. She earned three pole positions. This was the same as Tomas Scheckter's record for poles in his rookie season. She was named the Rookie of the Year at both the 2005 Indianapolis 500 and the 2005 IndyCar Series. She improved over the next two years, racing for Rahal Letterman Racing in 2006 and, later, Andretti Green Racing in 2007. Patrick finished sixth in the driver's standings following her win in Japan. The following season she improved on this, and finished fifth overall in the drivers' standings. Patrick also scored in a career-high third place at Indianapolis 500, which was the highest performance by a female driver at the race. Patrick's overall performance declined in 2010, but she still achieved two second-place finishes at oval tracks before leaving IndyCar following the 2011 season to focus exclusively on stock car racing.