Ladies, Start Your Engines!

Posted on May 23, 2008
Filed Under Sports, Women | 1 Comment

Women have not been taken seriously in most forms of racing, one of them being the open-wheel IndyCar series. The world of auto racing has always been, and continues to be, dominated by men but, this Sunday, Danica Patrick could change all that.

Danica Patrick is a petite and an attractive 26-year-old woman who began racing go karts at a young age. She moved on to open-wheel racing in Europe where she was discovered by former Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal, who gave her the opportunity to join his Indy Racing League.

This year on April 20th, Patrick won at Twin Ring Motegi in the Indy Japan 300 becoming the first woman to win an IndyCar race, joining the ranks of drag racer Shirley Muldowney, who won three NHRA Top Fuel Championships as a “first female” winner in the top tier of American motorsports. Patrick took the Indy Japan 300 after the race leaders were forced to pit for fuel in the final laps. She finished 5.8594 seconds ahead of the Brazilian pole-sitter Helio Castroneves on the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) Twin Ring Motegi oval.

The pressure is on! If she wins this Sunday, she will be making history as the first woman to win the Indianapolis 500.

Several male drivers have made negative comments about Patrick’s ability as a woman, to race successfully. In May 2006, after Danica appeared on ESPN SportsCenter’s Budweiser Hot Seat, Richard Petty stated, “I just don’t think it’s a sport for women, and so far, it’s proved out. It’s really not. It’s good for them to come in. It gives us a lot of publicity, it gives them publicity. But as far as being a real true racer, making a living out of it, it’s kind of tough.” Yeah right. Ladies start your engines!!

Catch the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday 12 noon on ABC