Danica Patrick was born on March 25, 1982 and raised in Roscoe, Illinois. Not a big racing fan as a child, Patrick did get exposed to a lot of motor sports, “The family would always go when my dad raced motorcross, and snowmobiles, and midgets. It was a matter of spending time with the family,” she said.
More interested in participating than watching, Danica started racing go-karts with her sister when she was 10. When Patrick was 12 she won the World Karting Association champtionship.
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In 2002, after a runner-up finish in the Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch, former Indy 500 champion Bobby Rahal signed her and started training Patrick for Toyota Atlantic Series with Rahal-Letterman racing. In 2005 she was moved up to the Indy Racing League.
Patrick finished the 2005 racing season with an overall standing of 12th. She was named Rookie of the Year for her performance in the Indy 500, as well as the 2005 Indy Car Series, and achieved three separate pole positions during the same season, tying a rookie record.
The 2006 season saw Patrick improve to a ninth place overall finish for the Indy Car Series Championship; in 2007, she started racing the #7 Motorola car and finished the season in seventh place ovearll.
On April 19, 2008, Patrick became the first female driver to win a major IndyCar race at the Indy Japan 300.
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