Danica Feels Pressure to Win More Races

Associated Press/AP Online

INDIANAPOLIS - No excuses. Danica Patrick knows she must start winning races.

Danica-mania hit the Indianapolis 500 two years ago, when she was the first woman to lead the race and finished fourth. She was the Indy rookie of the year and won three poles later that season, but never managed a finish better than fourth.

She left Rahal Letterman Racing after last season and joined talent-laden Andretti Green as a teammate of Michael and Marco Andretti, Tony Kanaan and Dario Franchitti.

"I guess I do feel more pressure this year," Patrick said Wednesday. "It's many things that contribute to that, though. As the years go on, you get more impatient. You just want to go out there and run up front."

Through the first four races this season, Patrick is eighth in IRL points and is coming off her best finish of seventh at Kansas Speedway.

"It was definitely a frustrating year last year, driving better but not finishing better," she said. "There are many people who have invested into me and into performing well and winning races, so I want to return that. I want to do it more for me than them, though."

Patrick was sixth-fastest Tuesday in the first full day of practice for the May 27 race, turning a top lap of 224.457 mph.

Rain limited Wednesday's practice to two hours late in the afternoon, and Patrick's best speed was 223.476 mph, ninth-fastest of the day.

Dan Wheldon was the fastest for the second straight day, with a top lap of 226.391 mph. Two-time winner Helio Castroneves was next at 225.820, and Wheldon's Gannassi Racing teammate Scott Dixon was third at 224.902. Marco Andretti, the Indy runner-up and rookie of the year last year, was at 224.745, followed by Kanaan at 224.112 and 2006 winner Sam Hornish Jr. at 224.054.

"It's a great track to drive around," Wheldon said, although he would not speculate on what speed would be necessary to win the pole.

"I'm really not sure," he said. "It's always difficult to predict, but I'd say it would be similar to last year."

The first of four days of qualifications is Saturday. Last year's pole speed, by Hornish, was 228.985 mph.

"There's less excuses," said Patrick, who qualified 10th last year. "The team is better prepared, I believe. It will happen and people still believe that, and that's a good thing. It's not like anybody's saying, 'Well, maybe you can't.' I haven't heard that yet. So that's very positive. I know it's a matter of time and a matter of everything falling into place at the right time."

Last year at Indy, Patrick ran as high as fifth, but handling problems kept her out of contention most of the race and she finished eighth. She matched her career best with fourth-place finishes at Nashville and Milwaukee.

"Unfortunately, the first year I had a fast car but not as much experience; the next year I had more experience and I was prepared as a driver more, but the car was bad," Patrick said. "As we get comfortable with each other on the team that I'm at now, it will come."

The best finish by a woman in an IndyCar race was second by Sarah Fisher at Homestead, Fla., in 2001. Fisher and rookie Milka Duno also are entered at Indy.

Wheldon, who won the 500 two years ago for Andretti Green and is now in his second season with Ganassi, leads the IRL points after two wins in the first four races. He was the fastest in practice Tuesday at 225.074 mph, just ahead of Castroneves at 224.996.

"From last year to this year some teams have picked up speed, us for sure, maybe even to lead that pack," Patrick said. "It's not the four red (Ganassi and Penske) cars just storming away. I'm not going to say they're not fast. Definitely, clearly, in particular Dixon and Wheldon are very quick right now, but they're not like 5 mph quicker than us."

Kanaan's top lap in his own car was 224.622 mph. He also tested Patrick's and Marco Andretti's cars and reached more than 222 mph in both.

"We were trying some different things, and the best way to judge is to have one driver driving all the cars," Kanaan said. "I was chosen to drive the cars because I'm the closest in size to Marco and Danica."

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