When Danica Patrick gave her advice for aspiring women drivers: “Have a goal”

The only woman to win an IndyCar race to date, Danica Patrick, is an inspiration to many aspiring women racing drivers. She brought the curtain down on her career in 2018, but back in 2015, while she was actively racing, she was asked to give her advice for women drivers.

The 43-year-old had an exclusive conversation with SI, where she looked back on her early racing days and urged women drivers to set specific goals for themselves.

"Don’t think of yourself as being any different from the guys. That’s what I learned from my upbringing. My mom and dad were never the ones to say that being the fastest girl was good enough. It was always about being the fastest driver. If you think of yourself as being any different, you will be different. Our thoughts manifest into reality, so believe in yourself and have a goal," Patrick said.

Danica Patrick's career in American motorsports began in 2005 at the Toyota Indy 300. From then on, she took part in racing categories like IndyCar and NASCAR (Xfinity Series and Cup Series) and proved her mettle as a competent racing driver.

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Danica Patrick felt a 'ton of support' competing in a male-dominated field like motorsports

While Danica Patrick came up with advice for aspiring women drivers back in 2015, via the same interview, she also took the time to talk about her journey in racing.

The 43-year-old asserted that she always felt supported while locking horns with male drivers on the race track.

"No. I feel like I’ve gotten a ton of support, and I’m around as a female athlete in a day in age when there is a lot of open-mindedness to women in sports, and particularly women in racing. There was a point in time probably 30 years before I came in when women weren’t even allowed in the pits, so everything has progressed and evolved, and it’s a good time to be around," Patrick said via the aforementioned source.

Danica Patrick's racing career was full of noteworthy accolades. In her debut IndyCar season, she was chosen as the 2005 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year. In 2008, she had her first and only win in the sport at the Indy Japan 300.

From 2012 onwards, she started competing in stock car racing (NASCAR Cup Series) on a full-time basis and went on to amass 191 outings until the 2018 Daytona 500. During this time, she was able to secure seven top-ten finishes alongside a solitary pole position.

Since retiring from competitive racing, the 43-year-old has become a podcast host, alongside making appearances as a pundit during motorsports race weekends.