'Proud to celebrate' - Tony Stewart's NHRA team applauds Leah Pruett and other women on National Girls & Women in Sports Day

Tony Stewart Racing, a National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) team owned by retired three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart, expressed their feelings on National Girls & Women in Sports Day in a recent social media post. The National Girls & Women in Sports Day, annually organized during the first week of February, is meant to acknowledge the achievements of females in sports and the barriers they've broken.

The team took to X to post a graphic of Leah Pruett, a 12-time NHRA winner and wife to Stewart, to celebrate National Girls & Women in Sports Day and recognize Pruett's legacy and the achievements of other women who have made a name for themselves in the NHRA. Tony Stewart Racing wrote:

"#TSRnitro is proud to celebrate National Girls & Women in Sports Day. We recognize @LeahPruett_TF and all the other females that are leading the way in the @NHRA #NHRA | #Dodge"

Women have made their presence known in NHRA over the years. Perhaps the most notable names are Ashley and Brittany Force, daughters of drag racing legend John Force. The two sisters have their legacies cemented as accomplishing a few firsts for women in the NHRA.

In 2008, Ashley beat her dad John Force in the NHRA Southern Nationals to become the first female driver to win a Funny Car event. Ashley also became the first female to lead the NHRA Funny Car points standings that same year, but her runner-up finish in the points standings in 2009 was the highest finish for a female.

Brittany, the younger of the two sisters, won 16 NHRA events. In 2019, Force became the first woman driver to be the fastest qualifier in Top Fuel at the U.S. Nationals.

Pruett, meanwhile, has competed in the NHRA for 14 long years and won 18 events, with 12 coming in Top Fuel, three in Pro Mod, and three in Factory Stock Showdown. Although still signed with TSR, Pruett is semi-retired after giving birth to her and Stewart's first son, Dominic, last November.

Who was the most accomplished female NASCAR driver?

When it comes to women in NASCAR, there's perhaps no one who's done more than Danica Patrick. The former IndyCar Series winner burst onto the NASCAR scene in 2010 and broke barriers for female racers.

Patrick began her NASCAR career in the Xfinity Series in 2010, driving the #7 for Jr. Motorsports. In 2011, Patrick scored a fourth-place finish at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, which broke a 62-year record for the best finish for a female in a NASCAR national touring series race.

In 2013, Patrick moved up to the Cup Series to drive for Stewart-Haas Racing and became the first female to start on the pole for a race. She became the first woman to lead a green flag lap in that same race. With 191 career starts spanning over seven seasons, Patrick has the most career starts for a woman in NASCAR.