Top Women Drivers

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
May 22, 2008

Top Women Drivers

Ashley Force

Driving against her father, John, in the finals of the April 27 Summit Southern Nationals at Atlanta, Ashley became the first female winner in NHRA Funny Car history.

Danica Patrick

A two-time SI covergirl, Patrick broke perhaps the biggest barrier of all for women drivers when she became the first female to win an IndyCar Series event on April 20 in Japan. "It's a long time coming. Finally," she said after the win, which many thought was out of reach for her after years on the circuit. "It was a fuel strategy race, but my team called it perfectly for me. ... This is fabulous."

Melanie Troxel

Named the Sportswoman of the Year in 2007 by the Women's Sports Foundation, Troxel won two Top Fuel events last season and led the POWERade Series point standings through the first 12 races. She was nominated for two ESPY awards in 2006 (best driver and best female athlete). With a May 20 victory in the O'Reilly Thunder Valley Nationals, she became the first woman to win NHRA races in both the Funny Car and Top-Fuel classes.

Sarah Fisher

Fisher's second-place finish in the IRL race at Homestead in 2001 is the second-best result for a woman driver in Indy-style racing. She'll make her 2008 debut at this year's Indy 500, driving for her newly formed Sarah Fisher Racing team.

Milka Duno

In January, Duno finished second in the Rolex 24 at Daytona, the highest podium finish for a female driver in the 45-year history of the event. Last year she became the first Hispanic female driver to qualify for the Indy 500 with a four-lap average speed of 220.305 mph. She'll start on the outside of the ninth row this year at Indy.

Erin Crocker

Crocker is the only woman to compete full time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. She started her career in open-wheel racing and is the only female to win a World of Outlaws race.

Leilani Munter

Munter, who once worked as a photo double/stunt driver for actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, is working her way up the NASCAR ranks. Last August, she finished fifth in the Indy Pro Series Kentucky 500.

Katherine Legge

The British native drove in the old Champ Car series in 2006 and '07, finishing sixth at Milwaukee two years ago. This spring she switched to the DTM series.

Erica Enders

Enders began her Pro Stock career in 2005 and has raced to two final rounds while setting several personal-best elapsed time and top-speed marks. She signed with Mach 1 Air Services in 2007, finishing that season with a 5-7 overall record.

Liz Halliday

The California native, who now lives in England, has enjoyed more success than any other female driver in the American Le Mans Series, winning three times while finishing runner-up in the P2 driver's championship. In 2007 season she became the first woman to race the Aston Martin DBR9 on the international scene, securing a class podium at the 12 Hours of Sebring and a fourth-place finish at Monza.

Hillary Will

The fastest female in the history of the NHRA and driver of the 8,000-horsepower KB Racing, LLC Top Fuel dragster, Will has reached three semifinals this season and been as high as fifth-place in championship points.

Angelle Sampey

Since her debut in 1996, the pro stock motorcycle driver has earned 40 event victories, the most wins for any female in NHRA competition. In 2002 she became the second driver -- male or female -- to win three consecutive NHRA Pro Stock Bike championships. She ended the 2007 season in the top five -- the 11th time she's done that in 12 seasons, and broke one record.

Chrissy Wallace

A member of the famed Wallace racing family, Chrissy was the first female to win a Late Model Race at Hickory Motor Speedway, that milestone cane in June 2007, the same year she won rookie of the year honors at the speedway.