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Danica Patrick Career Highlights

2016

  • Scored 14 top-20 finishes and led a career-best 30 laps in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. Earned an average start of 25.1 and an average finish of 22nd. Average result was 1.5 spots better than previous best record of 23.5, earned in 2015.
  • Finished 24th in the NASCAR Cup Series driver standings.

2015

  • By scoring top-10 results at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway and Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in April, Patrick earned the record for the most top-10 finishes of any female in Cup Series competition with a total of six top-10s. The previous record of five top-10s was held by Janet Guthrie.
  • Scored two top-10s and 13 top-20 finishes. Earned an average start of 22.4 and an average finish of 23.5.
  • Finished 24th in the Cup Series driver standings, which was four positions better than her 2014 result and three spots better than 2013.

2014

  • Finished a career-best sixth in August at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The effort marked the highest finish by a female at the 1.54-mile oval. The previous record was held by Janet Guthrie (10th on March 19, 1978). Only a fifth-place result by the late Sara Christian in a Cup Series race on Oct. 2, 1949 at Heidelberg (Pa.) Raceway tops Patrick’s finish in NASCAR’s highest series. Christian also finished sixth at Langhorn (Pa.) Speedway on Sept. 11, 1949 and Guthrie finished sixth at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway on Aug. 28, 1977.
  • Had two other top-10 finishes including a seventh in the May Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City and an eighth-place result in July at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.
  • Qualified fourth in May at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, her best effort at a non-restrictor plate track. Had six top-10 starts.
  • Led 15 laps and finished on the lead lap 19 times, both better than in 2013.
  • Went from an average finish of 26.1 in 2013 to 23.7 and an average start of 30.1 in 2013 to 22.3.
  • Finished 28th in the Cup Series driver standings.

2013

  • Became the first woman to win a Cup Series pole when she set the fastest time in qualifying for the 55th running of the Daytona 500.
  • Led laps 90-91 of the Daytona 500 under caution, becoming the first female to lead NASCAR’s most prestigious race. She also led laps 127-129 under green to become the first woman to lead a NASCAR race under green. Janet Guthrie led five laps under yellow in 1977 at Ontario (Calif.) Motor Speedway.
  • Finished the Daytona 500 in eighth place, the highest finishing position ever for a woman in the event.
  • By leading laps in the Daytona 500, Patrick joined an elite club of only 14 drivers to have led both the Daytona 500 and the Indianapolis 500. The other drivers to accomplish the feat are A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Al Unser, Bobby Unser, Bobby Allison, Jim Hurtubise, Johnny Rutherford, Tim Richmond, John Andretti, Robby Gordon, Juan Pablo Montoya, A.J. Allmendinger and Tony Stewart. Of those 14 drivers, only Patrick, Foyt, Andretti, Gordon, Montoya, Allmendinger and Stewart have led at least five laps in each race.
  • Patrick’s eighth-place finish in the Daytona 500, coupled with her six top-10 finishes in the Indianapolis 500, make her one of only 17 drivers to have top-10 results in each race. The other drivers are Foyt, Montoya, Gordon, Rutherford, Allmendinger, Stewart, Mario Andretti, Al Unser, Bobby Johns, Cale Yarborough, Dan Gurney, Donnie Allison, Kurt Busch, Jerry Grant, Paul Goldsmith and Tom Sneva.
  • Became first woman to start a Cup Series race at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, which opened in 1949. Impressive rookie performance bested those of some other name drivers in their Martinsville debuts, most notably, her team owner, as Stewart finished 20th in his first Martinsville start (1999). Seven-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson finished 35th in his Martinsville debut (2002). NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace finished 15th (1984). Dale Jarrett finished 14th (1984). Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished 26th (2000). Kyle Busch finished 39th (2005). Matt Kenseth finished 21st (2000). Kurt Busch finished 37th (2000). Fred Lorenzen finished 24th (1956).
  • Finished 27th in Cup Series points and placed second in Rookie of the Year standings. Became first woman to compete in the full 36-race Cup Series schedule.

2012

  • Competed in full 33-race NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule with JR Motorsports for the first time and finished a record-setting 10th in the season-ending point standings.
  • The top-10 placing in Xfinity Series points made Patrick the highest-finishing woman in a major stock-car series in 63 years, eclipsing Christian’s 13th-place finish in the Strictly Stock Series standings in 1949.
  • Won the pole for the season-opening Xfinity Series race at Daytona on Feb. 25, becoming the first woman since Shawna Robinson in 1994 to win a pole in the Xfinity Series.
  • Recorded four top-10 finishes in the Xfinity Series, with an average start of 14.9 and an average finish of 18.8. Led six of 33 races, including a season-high 20 laps on the road course at Montreal’s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Aug. 18. Best finish of eighth came at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth on April 13. Added a ninth-place effort at Bristol on Aug. 24 and finished in the top-15 in the season’s final five events.
  • Was voted the Xfinity Series’ Most Popular Driver.
  • Ran a partial Cup Series schedule in preparation for a full-time Cup Series effort in 2013. Made steady improvement during her 10-race run, culminating with finishes of 24th and 17th, respectively, in her final two events at Texas on Nov. 4 and Phoenix International Raceway on Nov. 11.

2011

  • Finished fourth in Xfinity Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 5, the best-ever finish by a woman in a NASCAR national stock-car series, topping a fifth-place run by Christian in a Cup Series race in 1949 at Heidelberg Raceway.
  • Led 13 of 100 laps in Xfinity Series race at Daytona on July 1 en route to a 10th-place finish.
  • Scored one top-five, three top-10 and five top-15 finishes in 12 Xfinity Series races for JR Motorsports. Average finish was 17.4, up from a 28.0 average finish in 2010 Xfinity Series competition.
  • Finished 10th in IndyCar Series points driving for Andretti Autosport with 10 top-10s, including a 10th-place result in Indianapolis 500 on May 29.
  • Extended IndyCar Series record to 50 races without a DNF (did not finish).

2010

  • Made stock-car debut in Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) race Feb. 6 at Daytona, where she started 12th and finished sixth driving a car owned by Billy Gerhart.
  • Xfinity Series debut came Feb. 13 at Daytona with a 35th-place finish after being involved in multi-car accident just past the race’s halfway point.
  • Competed in 13 Xfinity Series races for JR Motorsports, improving as the year progressed. Average finishing position of first seven races was 31.1, while average result in last six events was 24.3.
  • Started 13th and finished sixth in NASCAR K&N Pro Series East race Sept. 24 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway.
  • Finished 10th in IndyCar Series points driving for Andretti Autosport with eight top-10 finishes in 17 starts. Started 23rd and finished sixth in Indianapolis 500 on May 30.
  • Voted IndyCar Series Most Popular Driver for the sixth time.

2009

  • Finished a career-best fifth in IndyCar Series points – the best points finish ever by a woman in the series.
  • Scored 10 top-10 finishes driving for Andretti Green Racing, including a third-place result at the Indianapolis 500 on May 24 – the best finish ever for a woman in the historic race.
  • Voted IndyCar Series Most Popular Driver for the fifth time.
  • Finished eighth in GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series Rolex 24 At Daytona. Drove a Crawford Pontiac for Childress-Howard Motorsports with co-drivers Casey Mears, Andy Wallace and Rob Finlay.

2008

  • Became first woman to win a major-league open-wheel race in a North American series by winning IndyCar Series Indy Japan 300 on April 20 at the Twin Ring Motegi oval in Japan.
  • Finished sixth in IndyCar Series points with nine top-10 finishes driving for Andretti Green Racing.
  • Finished outside of the top 10 at the Indianapolis 500 for the only time in her career May 25 after a pit-road collision with Ryan Briscoe on lap 171 that led to a 22nd-place finish.
  • Voted IndyCar Series Most Popular Driver for the fourth time.

2007

  • Moved to Andretti Green Racing and finished seventh in points with 11 top-10 results.
  • Finished second Sept. 2 on the road course at Belle Isle in Detroit, tying Sarah Fisher for best finish ever by a woman in the IndyCar Series.
  • Finished eighth in rain-shortened Indianapolis 500 on May 27.
  • Voted IndyCar Series Most Popular Driver for the third time.

2006

  • Competed in second full IndyCar Series season for Rahal Letterman Racing and finished ninth in point standings with eight top-10 results.
  • Finished fourth July 15 at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway and July 23 at The Milwaukee Mile in West Allis, Wis.
  • Started 10th and finished eighth in Indianapolis 500 on May 28.
  • Voted IndyCar Series Most Popular Driver for the second time.
  • Made GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series debut in the Rolex 24 At Daytona on Jan. 29 driving a Porsche Crawford with Rusty Wallace, Allan McNish and Jan Lammers for Howard-Boss Motorsports. Team finished 24th after a mechanical failure just past the nine-hour mark.

2005

  • Made IndyCar Series debut at Homestead-Miami Speedway on March 6, driving for Rahal Letterman Racing. Finished 15th after being involved in a multi-car accident on lap 159.
  • In just fourth career start, qualified second and led 32 laps en route to an impressive fourth-place finish April 30 at the oval at Twin Ring Motegi.
  • Finished fourth in Indianapolis 500 on May 29, at the time the best finish by a woman. Led three times for 19 laps and passed eventual winner Dan Wheldon for the lead with 11 laps remaining, but was forced to give up the lead on lap 194 of 200 to conserve fuel.
  • Turned fastest lap on the opening day of Indianapolis 500 practice and went on to post top practice speed five times throughout the month – more than any other driver – including Pole Day and Carb Day. Practice lap of 229.880 mph on Pole Day was the fastest of any driver during the month and the fastest turned by any woman in the history of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
  • Qualified fourth, the best starting spot ever for a woman in the Indianapolis 500.
  • Named Indianapolis 500 and IndyCar Series Rookie of the Year.
  • Won pole for races at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City on July 3, Kentucky Speedway in Sparta on Aug. 14 and Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois, on Sept. 11, tying her with Tomas Scheckter for most poles by a rookie in a season.
  • Finished 12th in points with seven top-10 finishes and was named IndyCar Series most popular driver.

2004

  • Competed in second full Toyota Atlantic season driving for Rahal Letterman Racing. Finished third in points.
  • Scored 10 top-five finishes in 12 races.
  • In June on the road course at Portland (Ore.) International Raceway, became first woman in Toyota Atlantic Series history to win a pole and went on to finish second in the race. Runner-up result gave her the points lead, making her first woman in series history to hold the top spot.

2003

  • Drove in first full Toyota Atlantic season for Rahal Letterman Racing. Finished sixth in points with five top-fives.
  • Finished third at the road course at Monterrey, Mexico, for the first podium result by a woman in series history. Bested that finish by placing second later in the year at the street course in Miami.

2002

  • Signed by Rahal Letterman Racing to compete in five Barber Dodge Pro Series races and finished a season-best fourth at the Vancouver (British Columbia) Grand Prix in Canada.
  • Started on the pole and won the professional portion of the Toyota Pro/Celebrity race at the Long Beach (Calif.) Grand Prix.

2000 – 2001

  • Competed in Europe and raced in the British Zetec Formula Ford series.
  • Finished second in the prestigious Formula Ford Festival in 2000 at the famous Brands Hatch road course in England, the highest finish ever for an American in the event.

1989 – 1999

  • Moved to Europe and drove for two seasons in the British Formula Vauxhall series.

1992 – 1997

  • Competed in karting and won numerous regional titles while also winning the World Karting Association Grand National Championship in 1994, 1996 and 1997.