"I’m just myself": When Danica Patrick addressed critics questioning her success and marketing skills

In November 2013, Danica Patrick responded confidently to critics who questioned her success and marketing skills. Patrick, one of NASCAR's stalwarts in women's motorsport, appeared with the New York Times and addressed questions hurled at her.

Patrick sat with NY Times' Amy Chozick and answered numerous questions related to her career. In one of the questions, she was asked about her flawless marketing skills despite not winning a race. In reply to this, Patrick said,

"I won a race in IndyCar, and that was nice. When the marketing is heavy, people are quick to say that they didn’t earn it or they’re not any good. I’m just myself, and if people are curious about it, I’m flattered — and that is great for my sponsors, and that’s part of why they come on board."

Following this, she was asked to explain the 'Danica brand', to which, she replied,

"When I joined up with IMG Worldwide back in 2009, we came up with a slogan: “A beautiful revolution.” It’s about being feminine but unique and different and kind of blazing a trail."

Danica Patrick is the most successful woman in American open-wheel racing and at the same time, one of the most successful women in stock car racing. She won the 2008 Indy Japan 300 in IndyCar, and to this day, it's the only win by a woman driver in the series.

Besides this, she was also the most popular IndyCar driver from 2005 to 2012, and won two awards in her IndyCar debut year — the 2005 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year, and the 2005 IndyCar Series season Rookie of the Year. Patrick raced in the IndyCar Series for eight years, where she claimed one victory, three poles, and seven podiums.

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"I took the opportunity": When Danica Patrick justified her career choice

During the aforementioned interview with The New York Times, Danica Patrick also touched upon her career choice and justified it. Patrick dropped out of school when she was 16 years old to pursue racing. When asked if she would be there where she was (racing on top tier series) had she not done that, she replied,

"I took the opportunity that was in front of me, which meant moving to England and leaving school. I did get my G.E.D. — I call it my “Good Enough Diploma” — but I don’t know, I think I showed my dedication by doing that."

Danica Patrick made her NASCAR Cup Series debut at the 2012 Daytona 500. In over seven years, she has participated in 191 races, claiming seven Top 10s and a pole position. Her pole at the Daytona 500 is still the only pole by a woman driver in NASCAR.

Danica Patrick, driver of the #7 GoDaddy Chevrolet, stands by her car - Source: Getty

Besides the Cup Series, the Beloit-born driver also raced in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for five years, where she had identical statistics to that of the Cup Series — a pole position and seven Top 10s.