Q&A with racing icon Danica Patrick

Matt Baker is joined this week by racing icon Danica Patrick as she answers questions from social media.

The former NASCAR and IndyCar driver discusses her broadcasting career with Sky Sports F1 (00:25) and how she got her first break in broadcasting (03:50).
She shares her earliest motorsport memory (07:35), how she got into IndyCar (11:05) and reflects on her successful Indy 500 debut back in 2005 (14:00). Danica also reveals her biggest career highlight (19:30) and what it is like to race on oval tracks (22:15).
She gives her opinion on how to get more women into F1 (26:00) and she identifies which rising women drivers have the speed to be competitive in F1 (29:35).
Finally, Danica is quizzed on which current F1 driver would be the fastest if everyone raced in RB 19s (31:15), her favourite circuit (33:45) and her life after racing (36:40).

**Navigating the World of Formula One with Danica Patrick: A Comprehensive Discussion**

**Introduction:**

Danica Patrick, a renowned figure in the world of motorsports, joins Matt Baker in this engaging podcast episode. From her broadcasting career with Sky Sports F1 to her remarkable journey as a racing icon, Danica delves into various aspects of Formula One, including the challenges, opportunities, and the future of women in the sport.

**Broadcasting Career in Formula One:**

Danica reflects on her transition from racing to broadcasting, highlighting the challenges of conducting interviews and the immense pressure that comes with it. She emphasizes the importance of empathy and understanding towards drivers, having been in their shoes herself.

**Racing Career and Achievements:**

Danica reminisces about her early motorsport memories, her path to IndyCar, and her successful Indy 500 debut in 2005. She reveals her biggest career highlight and shares her insights on racing on oval tracks, emphasizing the need for respect, trust, and bravery.

**Promoting Women in Formula One:**

Danica addresses the issue of gender diversity in Formula One, expressing her belief that great racing is the key to attracting fans, regardless of the gender of the drivers. She discusses the significance of female series in providing opportunities for women to showcase their talent and acknowledges the need for more women in prominent roles within the sport.

**Identifying Rising Women Drivers:**

Danica identifies rising women drivers who possess the speed and skills to compete in Formula One. She highlights the importance of providing equal opportunities and support for these drivers to nurture their talent and achieve their full potential.

**Hypothetical Scenarios and Personal Reflections:**

Danica engages in a hypothetical discussion about which current Formula One driver would be the fastest if everyone raced in RB 19s, showcasing her analytical skills and knowledge of the sport. She also shares her favorite circuit and reflects on her life after racing, emphasizing the importance of pursuing diverse interests and maintaining a healthy balance.

**Overall Message and Impact:**

Danica Patrick's appearance on the Sky Sports F1 Podcast offers a unique perspective on Formula One, combining her expertise as a former driver and her current role as a broadcaster. Her insights, opinions, and anecdotes provide valuable insights into the challenges, opportunities, and future of the sport, particularly regarding the involvement of women. The episode is both informative and engaging, catering to both casual fans and ardent followers of Formula One.

# Danica Patrick's Podcast Interview: Insights and Perspectives

## Introduction:
Danica Patrick, a renowned racing icon, joins Matt Baker in a captivating podcast interview. She delves into her broadcasting career with Sky Sports F1, shares her early motorsport memories, and reflects on her remarkable IndyCar journey. Patrick offers her expert opinions on promoting women in Formula One and identifies rising female drivers with exceptional speed. The podcast concludes with thought-provoking discussions on the ideal driver in identical cars, favorite racing circuits, and her fulfilling post-racing life.

## Broadcasting Career:
Danica Patrick's broadcasting career with Sky Sports F1 began when she received a call from Martin Brundle, inviting her to join the team. She credits her success to her ability to relate to both casual and hardcore fans, offering insights from a driver's perspective.

## Early Motorsport Memory:
Patrick's earliest motorsport memory dates back to her childhood when she attended a go-kart race with her family. The excitement and adrenaline of the event left a lasting impression on her, sparking her passion for racing.

## IndyCar Journey:
Danica Patrick's IndyCar journey began when she was 16 years old. She faced challenges as a female driver in a male-dominated sport but persevered through determination and hard work. Her successful Indy 500 debut in 2005 marked a significant milestone in her career.

## Career Highlight:
Patrick considers her victory in the 2008 Indy Japan 300 as her biggest career highlight. The race was particularly challenging due to heavy rain, but she managed to secure the win, becoming the first woman to win an IndyCar race.

## Oval Tracks:
Danica Patrick describes oval tracks as "a different beast" compared to road courses. She emphasizes the importance of maintaining focus and consistency while managing tire wear and fuel consumption. She also highlights the thrill of drafting and the strategic battles that unfold on oval tracks.

## Promoting Women in Formula One:
Patrick believes that providing more opportunities for women to race in Formula One is crucial for promoting gender diversity in the sport. She suggests increasing the number of cars and track time for female drivers, allowing them to showcase their skills and compete against male counterparts.

## Rising Female Drivers:
When asked about rising female drivers with the potential to succeed in Formula One, Patrick mentions Jamie Chadwick and Haley Deegan as promising talents. She acknowledges that there are likely other talented drivers who deserve recognition and opportunities.

## Ideal Driver in Identical Cars:
In a hypothetical scenario where all Formula One drivers compete in identical cars, Patrick selects Fernando Alonso and Max Verstappen as the potential frontrunners. She praises Alonso's consistency and ability to adapt to different conditions, while recognizing Verstappen's exceptional speed and aggression.

## Favorite Racing Circuits:
Patrick's favorite racing circuits include Richmond and Martinsville for their exciting short-track racing. She also enjoys traditional passing tracks like Mid-Ohio and Brands Hatch, where drivers must carefully manage their setups and passes. Additionally, she holds a special fondness for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, citing its iconic atmosphere and the success she achieved there.

## Guest Appearance at a European Circuit:
If given the opportunity to make a guest appearance at any European circuit as a driver, Patrick would choose Spa-Francorchamps. She recalls her experience driving a Formula Ford up the challenging Eau Rouge hill and expresses her desire to experience the circuit in a Formula One car.

## Post-Racing Life:
After retiring from motorsport, Danica Patrick has pursued various interests, including entrepreneurship, writing, podcasting, and winemaking. She finds fulfillment in these endeavors and enjoys the flexibility to travel and explore new experiences.

## Conclusion:
Danica Patrick's podcast interview provides valuable insights into her broadcasting career, early motorsport memories, and remarkable IndyCar journey. She offers thoughtful perspectives on promoting women in Formula One and identifies rising female drivers with exceptional potential. The podcast concludes with discussions on the ideal driver in identical cars, favorite racing circuits, and Patrick's fulfilling post-racing life.

[00:00.000 -> 00:06.480] Danica, welcome to the Sky Sports F1 Podcast.
[00:06.480 -> 00:06.980] Thank you.
[00:06.980 -> 00:07.480] How are you doing?
[00:07.480 -> 00:08.280] I'm good. How are you?
[00:08.280 -> 00:09.600] Yeah, very well, thanks. Very well.
[00:09.600 -> 00:12.280] I'm really looking forward to this chat because there's so much I want to get into.
[00:12.280 -> 00:16.480] And we've got a lot of questions from people at home as well on Twitter and Instagram.
[00:16.480 -> 00:18.480] So I'm going to try and get through as many of those as possible.
[00:18.480 -> 00:23.400] I want to talk about your career, your thoughts on Formula One at the moment, and also the future of motorsport,
[00:23.400 -> 00:26.840] how we can get more women into this brilliant sport as well. But I thought
[00:26.840 -> 00:29.360] actually because we're in the comms box here in Hungary this is quite an apt
[00:29.360 -> 00:32.560] place to start right because you've been with us at Sky for a couple of years now.
[00:32.560 -> 00:36.200] How's it all going? How are you enjoying being on the other side of the of the
[00:36.200 -> 00:42.640] mic? It's good. I've been retired for a little over five years and every year my
[00:42.640 -> 00:45.920] broadcasting presence has grown just a little bit. It started
[00:45.920 -> 00:51.280] with just doing the Indy 500 and then it went to a couple of NASCAR races, one F1
[00:51.280 -> 00:55.400] race, and now it's like a bunch of F1 races as well as the Indy 500 and a
[00:55.400 -> 01:00.360] couple of NASCAR races. So I have myself a little 10 race series in the season
[01:00.360 -> 01:04.220] now so that feels like a really good retired amount right now.
[01:04.220 -> 01:08.240] I mean when you were racing did you ever anticipate that you might have a career
[01:08.240 -> 01:11.480] afterwards in the media was that ever something on your mind?
[01:11.480 -> 01:17.000] No, no and I'm not sure if full-time is something that I could do
[01:17.000 -> 01:21.240] because it's like if you're gonna travel the whole schedule and do that do it all
[01:21.240 -> 01:27.400] just feels like you'd rather drive so I just enjoy doing so many other things.
[01:27.400 -> 01:29.600] I have other companies, I have other interests,
[01:29.600 -> 01:33.120] and truth be told, I do a little bit of vacationing now,
[01:33.120 -> 01:36.640] or a lot of it, so I really enjoy that.
[01:36.640 -> 01:40.880] But what I never expected was, one, actually,
[01:40.880 -> 01:43.400] how hard it is to do the interviews,
[01:43.400 -> 01:48.480] to conduct the interviews, and have unique questions.
[01:48.480 -> 01:52.040] And even just keep a, you have to have a real grip
[01:52.040 -> 01:54.640] on so much of what's going on,
[01:54.640 -> 01:56.680] that it's a lot of information.
[01:56.680 -> 01:59.800] And I was never really one to really get
[01:59.800 -> 02:02.680] into all that anyway, but it's so part of the job.
[02:02.680 -> 02:06.080] And so you have to know a lot of things
[02:06.080 -> 02:10.040] and you have to ask, I've never even thought
[02:10.040 -> 02:12.440] it would be intimidating to interview a driver,
[02:12.440 -> 02:15.640] but when I do that, I'm like, oh, geez, okay, here we go.
[02:15.640 -> 02:20.440] So I now have more empathy for those interviewing athletes
[02:20.440 -> 02:24.960] or anyone in particular, anyone with a famous name
[02:24.960 -> 02:26.300] or doing a big job
[02:26.300 -> 02:30.120] because, you know, it's a stressful situation
[02:30.120 -> 02:31.300] and you wanna do a good job.
[02:31.300 -> 02:33.520] And every now and again, I'd like get,
[02:33.520 -> 02:35.580] I would not be maybe the most pleasant.
[02:35.580 -> 02:37.280] So I'm sorry to those people out there
[02:37.280 -> 02:39.780] that interviewed me that I would, you know,
[02:39.780 -> 02:40.860] something like they'd ask me like,
[02:40.860 -> 02:43.820] oh, are you excited to be back at Kansas Motor Speedway?
[02:43.820 -> 02:49.200] And I remember one time. You'd roll your eyes. Oh no no no worse. I remember one time in
[02:49.200 -> 02:56.480] particular I was said is that the best question you can come up with? I mean as an interviewer
[02:56.480 -> 03:03.120] that strikes fear into the very core of me. I'm so sorry I do think that there are better
[03:03.120 -> 03:06.080] questions than that of course I think that you know I think think that there are better questions than that, of course. I think that, you know,
[03:06.080 -> 03:09.000] I think that that is a pretty generic one,
[03:09.000 -> 03:12.040] but I do understand the position the other person's in
[03:12.040 -> 03:15.920] and just how many people that,
[03:15.920 -> 03:18.640] that interviewer has to know about.
[03:18.640 -> 03:21.760] So, but, and then I just, you know,
[03:21.760 -> 03:24.840] the camaraderie on the other side is really fun.
[03:24.840 -> 03:32.720] And it really, you know, broadcasts really rely on having a good relationship with the other people that you're working with.
[03:32.720 -> 03:40.320] And so that's really the biggest reason why I do the so many Formula One races now is because I really enjoy the crew.
[03:40.440 -> 03:40.920] Yeah.
[03:41.240 -> 03:44.360] I'm going to make sure I try and ask some good questions here after.
[03:44.480 -> 03:47.000] It's okay if you don't, because I won't do that to you.
[03:47.000 -> 03:51.000] That's very kind, that's very kind. I'm intrigued to know what was your first break into broadcasting?
[03:51.000 -> 03:56.000] So obviously you were a racing driver, but what was the first time you managed to get on screen, get behind a microphone?
[03:56.000 -> 04:01.000] I mean, I've been on television doing various different things for a really long time.
[04:01.000 -> 04:07.440] You know, I was like, I remember when I was 14, I was on MTV,
[04:07.440 -> 04:09.840] doing this extreme athletes doing things,
[04:09.840 -> 04:11.880] and then there was a really big piece
[04:11.880 -> 04:14.320] that was on ABC Sports, and it was called
[04:14.320 -> 04:16.040] Passion to Play Making of a Champion,
[04:16.040 -> 04:18.600] and it was with myself, Anna Kournikova,
[04:18.600 -> 04:21.800] and Tara Lipinski, and we were all 14.
[04:21.800 -> 04:24.320] So television, cameras around has been something
[04:24.320 -> 04:27.380] I've been very comfortable with for a really long time.
[04:28.240 -> 04:31.600] But as far as hosting goes, you know, it was cool.
[04:31.600 -> 04:36.600] NASCAR did a really good job of utilizing their assets
[04:36.600 -> 04:37.440] at the track.
[04:37.440 -> 04:41.960] And so there was actually one race at Pocono
[04:41.960 -> 04:45.000] where it was an all driver broadcast
[04:45.160 -> 04:47.240] for the series below us,
[04:47.240 -> 04:49.880] what was then called the Nationwide Series.
[04:49.880 -> 04:52.560] So all the drivers were the broadcast that day.
[04:52.560 -> 04:54.820] So, you know, and then there was some other ones
[04:54.820 -> 04:56.120] where they would have me up there
[04:56.120 -> 05:00.440] for those Nationwide races as sort of a guest analyst.
[05:00.440 -> 05:03.280] And I did a few of those and always felt really comfortable.
[05:03.280 -> 05:07.080] So play-by-play is not my thing, like Crofty, have at it.
[05:07.080 -> 05:10.720] But as far as just like giving a different perspective,
[05:10.720 -> 05:14.600] a driver's perspective, a little insight into the workings
[05:14.600 -> 05:16.880] and the dynamics within teams and drivers,
[05:16.880 -> 05:18.480] that's something I enjoy sharing.
[05:18.480 -> 05:19.320] Yeah.
[05:19.320 -> 05:23.480] As now a broadcaster, do you miss racing?
[05:23.480 -> 05:24.440] Do you, obviously,
[05:24.440 -> 05:25.100] cause you're going to a lot of racetracks now in this new part of your career. When you come here, is you miss racing? Do you, obviously, because you're going to a lot
[05:25.100 -> 05:27.680] of racetracks now in this new part of your career,
[05:27.680 -> 05:29.520] when you come here, is there still a part of you
[05:29.520 -> 05:31.780] that's kind of going, oh, I wish I was on track,
[05:31.780 -> 05:33.620] I wish I was still doing that?
[05:33.620 -> 05:36.520] I would say that, like, that feeling of, like,
[05:36.520 -> 05:39.000] the sensation of the car, like,
[05:39.000 -> 05:43.040] creeps up maybe one or 2% every year.
[05:43.040 -> 05:45.840] Like, I've noticed, a little like oh like the
[05:45.840 -> 05:54.480] sensation of it is so unique that it's been a while now but I by no means wish
[05:54.480 -> 05:58.840] I was out there. And I guess as well athletes you know once once you retire
[05:58.840 -> 06:04.640] as an athlete it must be hard to match the adrenaline, the competition in
[06:04.640 -> 06:05.760] everyday life. I mean,
[06:05.760 -> 06:11.040] as not an elite athlete myself, I can't imagine much comes close to driving a car over 200 miles
[06:11.040 -> 06:18.080] an hour and being in that intense competition. Is that fair? That's probably fair. Yeah. I mean,
[06:18.080 -> 06:25.000] because there's a physical risk element, but mostly like an ego risk element.
[06:25.240 -> 06:29.280] My greatest fear forever was just failing, not being good.
[06:29.280 -> 06:33.520] So I think that it is hard to match that,
[06:33.520 -> 06:37.480] but it doesn't mean you can't kind of scratch the surface.
[06:38.760 -> 06:41.800] I have this theory that in general,
[06:41.800 -> 06:47.560] we kind of find our peak moments like we find our peak stress
[06:47.560 -> 06:51.400] naturally with whatever we're doing based on how you know pushing ourselves
[06:51.400 -> 06:55.480] because we only push ourselves as hard as we're willing to stress ourselves out
[06:55.480 -> 07:00.200] usually and so I find that everybody kind of has the rhythm it's where some
[07:00.200 -> 07:03.680] people are nonchalant about everything right you you meet people and they're
[07:03.680 -> 07:06.360] like cool as a cucumber no matter what.
[07:06.360 -> 07:08.440] And then you meet other people that get stressed out
[07:08.440 -> 07:10.260] and anxious over the smallest things.
[07:10.260 -> 07:13.400] And so, everybody kind of has their set point for it.
[07:13.400 -> 07:17.640] So, yeah, I still get close with various different things
[07:17.640 -> 07:19.300] that I do and I'm not sure if it's because
[07:19.300 -> 07:22.120] it's just as stressful or if it's just maybe,
[07:22.120 -> 07:26.640] maybe it ends up having to do with just my natural set point or how much I care, maybe.
[07:26.640 -> 07:28.640] I'm not really sure.
[07:29.640 -> 07:32.880] I want to get into your career now and I want you to take us back to where it all began.
[07:33.360 -> 07:35.280] What's your earliest motorsport memory?
[07:35.280 -> 07:40.560] What's the one thing you look back on in your childhood that you think that was when it all got started for motorsport?
[07:40.560 -> 07:49.060] Well, my earliest memory is probably not the same as when it all got started but but they probably go a little bit hand in hand. I mean I remember being at the
[07:49.060 -> 07:54.560] dirt track with my sister and my dad was working on a car and my sister and I
[07:54.560 -> 07:59.960] were in the grandstands just like buying like you know hot dogs and Freezy Pops
[07:59.960 -> 08:05.000] and Snickers I'm sure and collecting like all the clay that the cars kick up
[08:05.000 -> 08:11.760] off the corner and so I remember that but when it all changed I don't think
[08:11.760 -> 08:15.040] there was a time I went to the track and watched something that it changed but I
[08:15.040 -> 08:19.160] think that driving and winning was probably when it changed that was where
[08:19.160 -> 08:23.880] the dream to become a racecar driver came like I was winning by halfway
[08:23.880 -> 08:26.840] through my first year in go-karts and I remember thinking
[08:26.840 -> 08:28.880] that I would go to college for engineering
[08:28.880 -> 08:31.120] so I could learn how to work on my race car.
[08:31.120 -> 08:34.120] Yeah, and you came over to England, didn't you?
[08:34.120 -> 08:35.580] Then I realized when I came to England
[08:35.580 -> 08:37.600] that you did not need to know about cars,
[08:37.600 -> 08:39.600] you just needed to go make a cup of tea.
[08:41.240 -> 08:42.360] We've actually got a question,
[08:42.360 -> 08:44.700] that links us perfectly into one of our first questions
[08:44.700 -> 08:49.280] from Twitter, which is what was your favorite thing about the UK when you came over here?
[08:49.280 -> 08:55.400] I didn't love my experience in England. My favourite thing about England...
[08:55.400 -> 08:56.400] Tea?
[08:56.400 -> 09:07.740] People are really good at driving in England. I did like that. Yeah, but then I'd say the favorite, my favorite part
[09:07.740 -> 09:12.660] about going to England was just that, you know, it helped me grow up. I learned a
[09:12.660 -> 09:15.700] lot about life, not really a lot about cars, but I learned a lot about life.
[09:15.700 -> 09:19.600] Because how old were you at this point? 16. 16. That's really young. Three years, yeah.
[09:19.600 -> 09:24.300] To be leaving home. Yeah. And moving to a new country. So I learned a lot about life and
[09:24.300 -> 09:25.000] the experience was what really proved to Bobby Rahal that, who was the one home and moving to a new country. So I learned a lot about life and the
[09:25.000 -> 09:29.680] experience was what really proved to Bobby Rahal that, who was the one
[09:29.680 -> 09:33.880] that ended up giving me a job driving back in the States after I came back
[09:33.880 -> 09:38.120] when I was 19 because I was in England. Like he was like wow you're really
[09:38.120 -> 09:41.920] committed and you're willing to do what it takes so it was also part of his
[09:41.920 -> 09:48.240] decision so that was the that was the best part that came from it. Can I ask you your least favourite part of being in England?
[09:48.240 -> 09:52.800] Least favourite part, I mean if I'm being honest I really,
[09:53.600 -> 09:58.400] I thought that I had a lot of friends and then when I left I realised that after I
[09:59.200 -> 10:05.360] called them all like for six months, no one called me, I was like, hmm, maybe if I stop, let's see.
[10:05.360 -> 10:06.880] And then I never spoke to anyone again.
[10:06.880 -> 10:07.720] Really, really.
[10:07.720 -> 10:09.800] So I feel like it's really sad to think
[10:09.800 -> 10:12.440] that I spent three years and got to know people really well
[10:12.440 -> 10:14.520] and they just weren't really my friends.
[10:14.520 -> 10:15.360] Yeah.
[10:15.360 -> 10:17.320] That was kind of like a sad part.
[10:17.320 -> 10:20.160] And then the other part that was probably not so good is,
[10:22.320 -> 10:25.000] it's a real toss up between the food and the weather.
[10:25.640 -> 10:27.440] I mean, I'd have to say the weather
[10:27.440 -> 10:29.240] probably got me the most.
[10:29.240 -> 10:32.840] Like, I remember one day I was going out for a run
[10:32.840 -> 10:36.720] and I got my shoes on and opened up the door
[10:36.720 -> 10:38.160] and it was sunny, that's why I was like,
[10:38.160 -> 10:40.520] oh, it's time to go for a run, it's beautiful out.
[10:40.520 -> 10:42.680] Opened up the door and I opened up the door
[10:42.680 -> 10:44.400] and I stood there and it was sunny
[10:44.400 -> 10:50.600] and it just started raining on me. And it was probably God saying get the heck
[10:50.600 -> 10:55.420] out of here because I just stood there and I was like wow it just rains no
[10:55.420 -> 11:00.040] matter what doesn't it. Yeah so the weather. Welcome to England. So you
[11:00.040 -> 11:03.160] you went back to the States and then talk us through that part of your career
[11:03.160 -> 11:07.760] how did it eventually lead to 2005 and getting that driving IndyCar?
[11:07.760 -> 11:14.600] Well, my dad and I went to the track like lots of weekends in the year, just walking and talking
[11:14.600 -> 11:18.440] to people trying to see if they'd give me a ride and a test in the car, not a ride even,
[11:18.440 -> 11:27.240] just a test. And so many people said no or threw out some crazy number expense-wise to do it.
[11:27.840 -> 11:31.760] And then I remember I was just actually telling this story
[11:31.760 -> 11:33.680] to a girlfriend just the other day,
[11:33.680 -> 11:35.440] and I was saying how,
[11:35.440 -> 11:37.520] she was asking similar questions about my career
[11:37.520 -> 11:42.520] and how I did what I did and getting to IndyCar,
[11:42.800 -> 11:45.080] and there was somebody who told me
[11:45.080 -> 11:46.700] that I could have a full sponsorship
[11:46.700 -> 11:48.740] if Bobby Rahal signed a letter of intent
[11:48.740 -> 11:50.380] saying that he was gonna run me
[11:50.380 -> 11:52.820] in the feeder series called the Formula Atlantic series.
[11:52.820 -> 11:55.140] And so I was like, all right.
[11:55.140 -> 12:00.140] And so I went, it was a Milwaukee race for IndyCar.
[12:01.000 -> 12:02.560] My dad was like, all right, let's go to the track.
[12:02.560 -> 12:03.860] And I said, dad, I'm just sick of it.
[12:03.860 -> 12:06.720] Like I'm sick of going to the track and walking around
[12:06.720 -> 12:10.680] and having no one have any interest. And I'm like, I'm just over it. And, um,
[12:11.520 -> 12:15.680] the thing is, I usually do, I, I almost always do the right thing. I'm not going
[12:15.680 -> 12:19.960] to say always, cause I'm sure I don't always, but I usually do the right thing.
[12:19.960 -> 12:22.360] And so I was like, all right, let's go. And so he's like, all right, we'll just
[12:22.360 -> 12:25.560] go for an hour. And so we went, I saw Bobby and I said,
[12:25.560 -> 12:27.300] hey Bobby, I got a phone call that said,
[12:27.300 -> 12:28.920] if you have a signed a letter of intent
[12:28.920 -> 12:30.780] that says that we're doing the Formula Atlantic series
[12:30.780 -> 12:31.840] that we could have a full sponsor.
[12:31.840 -> 12:33.920] And he said, all right.
[12:33.920 -> 12:36.240] And I went, oh my God.
[12:36.240 -> 12:38.480] And two weeks later at the next IndyCar race,
[12:39.320 -> 12:42.360] we signed a letter of intent at a press conference
[12:42.360 -> 12:46.200] at Laguna Seca. And that's it.
[12:46.200 -> 12:49.200] And then I signed a contract that was two years
[12:49.200 -> 12:50.320] with a third year option.
[12:50.320 -> 12:52.680] The third year option was to go to IndyCar.
[12:52.680 -> 12:56.380] And it was in my second season.
[12:56.380 -> 12:57.480] I had a good first season.
[12:57.480 -> 12:59.240] Second season was even better.
[12:59.240 -> 13:01.320] I qualified on the pole.
[13:01.320 -> 13:03.320] I didn't win, but I think I finished third
[13:03.320 -> 13:05.280] in the championship or something, ran up front a lot.
[13:05.680 -> 13:09.600] And, um, I was at the Indianapolis motor speedway.
[13:09.600 -> 13:10.400] So it was may.
[13:10.400 -> 13:11.960] So it was still early in the season.
[13:12.240 -> 13:16.360] And, um, Bobby, it was there, it was the press conference, the media availability
[13:16.360 -> 13:21.040] day, and Bob was up at the front and he just randomly, while I was watching
[13:21.040 -> 13:25.000] this with all the press too, he said that Danica will be in racing
[13:25.000 -> 13:30.280] IndyCars next year and I was like what? Like oh my god so that's that's how the
[13:30.280 -> 13:33.680] transition happened. And I mean would that have happened if you hadn't have
[13:33.680 -> 13:37.400] gone to the track right right the very start of that story when you were kind
[13:37.400 -> 13:40.960] of so exactly down and out about the whole thing. Butterfly effect you never
[13:40.960 -> 13:45.360] know. It's strange. You never know. Sliding doors. I just was exactly.
[13:45.360 -> 13:49.320] Sliding doors, you just never know what that one moment will be that changes everything
[13:49.320 -> 13:54.460] and that's the reality of for all of life is you are always one decision away from an
[13:54.460 -> 13:56.000] entirely different life.
[13:56.000 -> 13:57.000] Yeah, fascinating.
[13:57.000 -> 14:00.280] 2005, you raced in the Indy 500 for the first time.
[14:00.280 -> 14:05.280] You became the first woman to lead laps and score a top five finish at the Indy 500.
[14:05.280 -> 14:09.840] A brilliant achievement but what did you make of it at the time and reflecting on it now,
[14:09.840 -> 14:14.480] do you see the significance of that achievement? More for sure yeah yeah I mean I look back and
[14:14.480 -> 14:18.240] even when I retired and I was doing the broadcast for the first time I remember watching the cars
[14:18.240 -> 14:24.720] come down the front straightaway to start the race and I was like wow they are crazy I was crazy.
[14:29.160 -> 14:34.760] was like wow they are crazy I was crazy yeah 240 miles an hour with just wheels nearly touching and having to thread the needle at that speed around a pretty
[14:34.760 -> 14:43.080] flat track so I remember thinking that but in the moment in 2005 I was like
[14:43.080 -> 14:46.600] when I took the lead people I was asked like how that felt.
[14:46.600 -> 14:48.720] And I said, I felt like I was where I was supposed to be.
[14:48.720 -> 14:50.800] The car was really fast all month.
[14:50.800 -> 14:52.080] I almost qualified on the pole.
[14:52.080 -> 14:55.000] I had a really big moment in turn one of my first lap
[14:55.000 -> 14:57.560] because I promised myself I was not gonna lift
[14:57.560 -> 14:59.820] at any point during the qualifying run.
[14:59.820 -> 15:01.040] And you have to do four laps
[15:01.040 -> 15:02.680] and it was really cold that day.
[15:02.680 -> 15:08.660] And so I went in a turn one, never lifted and it went, and it stepped out real quick.
[15:08.660 -> 15:11.940] And I had a one quick lift, caught it and then finished my four laps flat.
[15:12.240 -> 15:15.940] Um, and so I, I guess I did even better than keeping it flat.
[15:15.940 -> 15:17.260] I caught it from crashing.
[15:17.520 -> 15:20.760] Uh, but anyway, I qualified fourth and then I ended up finishing fourth, but I was
[15:20.940 -> 15:23.620] leading and then I lost the lead.
[15:23.620 -> 15:25.040] And then I passed again for the
[15:25.040 -> 15:28.160] lead on a restart and was leading right up until the very end.
[15:28.560 -> 15:32.120] And, um, and so I just, it felt really comfortable.
[15:32.440 -> 15:34.200] It felt really calm actually.
[15:34.200 -> 15:38.120] So, but I've always had such reverence and respect for the process.
[15:38.120 -> 15:42.360] I always, I really always, I really felt like I was so fortunate to be in a really
[15:42.360 -> 15:45.520] good car and have it be really fast. And I also
[15:45.520 -> 15:50.480] understand, stood the speed and magnitude of the track and just the fact that we were going so fast
[15:50.480 -> 15:54.880] and to never take for granted that the thing is underneath you and just to really be vigilant the
[15:54.880 -> 16:00.880] whole time. So, so yeah, I have a different perspective now, but then it felt comfortable.
[16:00.880 -> 16:09.360] Yeah. I mean, with the Indy 500, presumably that's something you watched a lot as a child. Yeah. And how did it feel to be there as a
[16:09.360 -> 16:14.520] participant, as a racer? I mean you're so in it, like it's hard to really be
[16:14.520 -> 16:19.560] objective because you're so in it, you're in the experience, you're focusing on the
[16:19.560 -> 16:25.880] job, but I think now with hindsight I can really appreciate just the magnitude of it.
[16:25.880 -> 16:28.080] Like if there was to be a girl right now
[16:28.080 -> 16:30.380] to go out there and nearly win her first year,
[16:30.380 -> 16:34.300] I'd be like, holy, wow, right?
[16:34.300 -> 16:35.460] And that's what I did.
[16:35.460 -> 16:38.940] And you know, it's funny actually,
[16:38.940 -> 16:40.040] just as a quick little story,
[16:40.040 -> 16:44.380] I was walking to Pitt Lane yesterday
[16:44.380 -> 16:47.300] and I see this person like put his arms up,
[16:47.300 -> 16:48.900] he's going to say hi to somebody.
[16:48.900 -> 16:51.780] This person that he's gonna hug and say hi to
[16:51.780 -> 16:55.700] is Jacques Villeneuve and I was like, oh.
[16:55.700 -> 16:59.400] And I just, I kinda had a, I was like, nah, keep going.
[16:59.400 -> 17:03.460] Because one, I tell the story because he was my,
[17:03.460 -> 17:05.360] the only driver I really thought like,
[17:05.360 -> 17:07.520] wow, that's amazing what he did,
[17:07.520 -> 17:10.400] because he, I think he finished second his first year
[17:10.400 -> 17:11.920] and he won his second year in IndyCar.
[17:11.920 -> 17:12.920] He won in Formula One.
[17:12.920 -> 17:14.880] I was like, that is amazing.
[17:14.880 -> 17:16.360] That guy clearly is so good
[17:16.360 -> 17:18.240] that he can just win in whatever he gets in.
[17:18.240 -> 17:21.460] And so the fact that I almost won my first year was like,
[17:21.460 -> 17:24.980] you know, reminiscent of just this driver that was so good
[17:24.980 -> 17:25.080] that he just jumps into it and nearly wins the race his first year. year was like, you know, I reminiscent of just this driver that was so good that
[17:25.080 -> 17:27.740] he just jumps into it and nearly wins the races first year.
[17:28.040 -> 17:33.960] Um, but then fast forward to when I ran, uh, the nationwide series, uh, the
[17:33.960 -> 17:39.020] NASCAR feeder series, um, we were, he would do the road course races.
[17:39.040 -> 17:42.640] And so it was road America in Wisconsin.
[17:43.140 -> 17:44.720] And, uh, I was running fourth.
[17:45.000 -> 17:45.180] It was coming down to the last lap and I was running fourth.
[17:47.360 -> 17:51.060] It was coming down to the last lap and he was fifth, and he just punted me, sent me at this, you know,
[17:51.960 -> 17:55.480] downhill 90 degree turn four or five or whatever it was
[17:55.480 -> 17:56.920] at the end of a long straightaway,
[17:56.920 -> 18:00.040] and I, you know, go off in the dirt and come back on.
[18:00.040 -> 18:02.280] Well, here I am in this scenario,
[18:02.280 -> 18:06.120] my like only guy that I ever looked up to now punted me
[18:06.120 -> 18:08.960] and all of the news after that was like,
[18:08.960 -> 18:11.240] what a jerk, you wanna go to school?
[18:11.240 -> 18:14.440] You know, just totally supporting me
[18:14.440 -> 18:17.160] and I thought, I am so glad that happened
[18:17.160 -> 18:20.560] because only in that scenario could I look good
[18:20.560 -> 18:23.200] next to the only person that I looked up to.
[18:23.200 -> 18:29.360] Like I look like the good, the better, I was ahead of him, he crashed me to get ahead
[18:29.360 -> 18:30.840] of me, like all of these things.
[18:30.840 -> 18:35.200] And I'm like, I'm kind of grateful he did it because it gave me this sort of like really
[18:35.200 -> 18:41.240] like wide perspective on having this experience as a kid looking up to him and then looking
[18:41.240 -> 18:42.620] better than him.
[18:42.620 -> 18:45.100] And it's hard to give yourself credit for the things that you've done.
[18:45.200 -> 18:47.640] You more than anything think about what you didn't do.
[18:47.740 -> 18:52.080] And so it kind of helps to drive home that, you know,
[18:52.180 -> 18:54.680] my skill or talent or what I accomplished.
[18:54.780 -> 18:56.880] And then, of course, the next time that we raced
[18:56.980 -> 18:59.420] against each other in the Nationwide Series was Montreal.
[18:59.520 -> 19:02.220] And inevitably, whenever you have an incident
[19:02.320 -> 19:05.320] with somebody on track, you always qualify next to them.
[19:05.520 -> 19:08.200] So him and I were third and fourth, second row.
[19:08.480 -> 19:13.920] And we had to ride around on the truck, around the track together on a very quiet ride.
[19:13.920 -> 19:16.520] So anyway, that's a long story.
[19:16.520 -> 19:25.120] But, you know, I felt very comfortable leading the race and, you know, also very grateful that I had a good car to be able to do that.
[19:26.160 -> 19:30.320] Ryan on Twitter would like to know what the biggest highlight for you was during your Indy
[19:30.320 -> 19:35.600] car and NASCAR career? I mean that first Indy 500 was by far and above really the most...
[19:36.400 -> 19:42.320] Really even above the win? transformative experience. Yeah. I mean I was like the win
[19:42.320 -> 19:45.200] in Japan I was good there the first year,
[19:45.200 -> 19:47.680] I qualified like a fraction off the pole
[19:47.680 -> 19:49.900] my first time there the year before,
[19:49.900 -> 19:52.160] or a few years before,
[19:52.160 -> 19:54.340] which led into the Indy 500 my first year
[19:54.340 -> 19:56.020] that I did really well.
[19:56.020 -> 19:58.800] And so it was just one weekend,
[19:58.800 -> 20:00.180] but my first Indy 500,
[20:00.180 -> 20:03.480] that was like fourth race as an Indy car driver.
[20:03.480 -> 20:06.620] I was super fast in rookie orientation.
[20:06.620 -> 20:08.480] I was fastest on Fast Friday.
[20:08.480 -> 20:10.280] I nearly qualified on the pole for the race.
[20:10.280 -> 20:11.620] I nearly won the race.
[20:11.620 -> 20:13.700] Many of the days that we practiced,
[20:13.700 -> 20:16.420] there would be the fastest practice,
[20:16.420 -> 20:18.600] whoever was top of the charts at the end of the day,
[20:18.600 -> 20:19.780] would go to a press conference.
[20:19.780 -> 20:22.860] I had that many days, so I had my $10,000 checks
[20:22.860 -> 20:23.940] from a bunch of those days.
[20:23.940 -> 20:29.000] So I won a lot that month, and it changed my whole life.
[20:30.760 -> 20:33.920] People said, especially agents, that,
[20:33.920 -> 20:36.440] I'm like, where are the sponsors and the endorsements?
[20:36.440 -> 20:39.040] And they're like, when you win, then they'll all come.
[20:39.040 -> 20:41.120] It didn't even change that.
[20:41.120 -> 20:43.740] So my life didn't really change that much after I won,
[20:43.740 -> 20:46.360] but after that first 500, my entire life changed.
[20:46.360 -> 20:47.600] Yeah, yeah.
[20:47.600 -> 20:50.620] And then qualifying on the pole for the Daytona 500,
[20:50.620 -> 20:52.420] not because it was hard, it was not hard.
[20:52.420 -> 20:53.320] It was all the crew.
[20:53.320 -> 20:56.760] They just prepared the car and you just hold it wide open.
[20:56.760 -> 20:58.100] Again, dismissing what it takes,
[20:58.100 -> 21:00.480] but anyone who drives NASCAR will agree with me.
[21:00.480 -> 21:02.020] It's very easy to qualify.
[21:03.560 -> 21:07.500] But starting next to, again, the one driver
[21:07.500 -> 21:10.680] I looked up to the most in NASCAR, Jeff Gordon.
[21:10.680 -> 21:12.760] So having that experience to be able to qualify
[21:12.760 -> 21:15.880] in the poll next to him and have those photos is also cool.
[21:15.880 -> 21:16.400] Yeah.
[21:16.400 -> 21:18.440] I wonder if we have a bit of that in F1, actually.
[21:18.440 -> 21:20.320] Because obviously, there are drivers
[21:20.320 -> 21:22.720] who would have grown up watching Lewis Hamilton, right?
[21:22.720 -> 21:24.640] Some of our younger drivers.
[21:24.640 -> 21:26.760] And you then find yourself going into a corner with Lewis,
[21:26.760 -> 21:27.600] I mean, Lando.
[21:27.600 -> 21:29.760] Fernando Alonso's gonna be 42.
[21:29.760 -> 21:31.960] I think I saw some picture on Instagram,
[21:31.960 -> 21:35.640] it was like a sperm and Fernando Alonso,
[21:35.640 -> 21:38.520] when he was like, whatever, whatever, Osco,
[21:38.520 -> 21:39.760] I think it was Oscar.
[21:39.760 -> 21:42.440] And then it was like him at this age with Fernando now,
[21:42.440 -> 21:44.480] and it showed like the delta of like,
[21:44.480 -> 21:46.600] when he was born, this this age with Fernando now, and it showed like the delta of like, when he was born,
[21:46.600 -> 21:50.320] this is what Fernando was doing, which is probably F1.
[21:50.320 -> 21:52.040] I never thought we'd talk about Fernando
[21:52.040 -> 21:53.960] as a sperm in this podcast, but there we are.
[21:53.960 -> 21:55.040] You can envision it.
[21:55.040 -> 21:55.600] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[21:55.600 -> 21:56.080] A fish.
[21:56.080 -> 21:56.360] Yeah, yeah.
[21:56.360 -> 21:56.960] Does that sound better?
[21:56.960 -> 21:57.480] Little fish.
[21:57.480 -> 21:58.120] There we go.
[21:58.120 -> 21:59.080] Perfect.
[21:59.080 -> 22:00.580] But yeah, you do forget, don't you,
[22:00.580 -> 22:02.200] that some of these drivers, these are heroes.
[22:02.200 -> 22:03.240] These are racing heroes.
[22:03.240 -> 22:03.760] Totally.
[22:03.760 -> 22:05.820] And they're racing against them.
[22:05.820 -> 22:08.420] I want to just get your thoughts on ovals.
[22:08.420 -> 22:13.380] And for some of our F1 audience, and for myself,
[22:13.380 -> 22:17.460] I think ovals are just this sort of mythical, the speed,
[22:17.460 -> 22:20.780] the danger of an oval, compared with, say,
[22:20.780 -> 22:22.740] a more traditional racetrack.
[22:22.740 -> 22:24.980] Just tell us what it's like to race an oval.
[22:24.980 -> 22:28.840] I mean, you with say a more traditional racetrack. Just tell us what it's like to race an oval. I mean, you have to really trust yourself
[22:28.840 -> 22:33.520] and trust your instincts because trying to step over that
[22:33.520 -> 22:35.380] usually ends badly.
[22:35.380 -> 22:38.720] So I think that's why I, especially at Indy,
[22:38.720 -> 22:41.600] I mean, I ended up crashing in my last Indy 500,
[22:41.600 -> 22:46.360] but until that point, I didn't ever crash at Indy and I really
[22:46.360 -> 22:51.320] didn't crash by myself very much. In fact, I think I had the longest streak when I,
[22:51.320 -> 22:56.040] maybe when I retired or finished, of finishes in IndyCar was like 50 or
[22:56.040 -> 22:59.640] something in a row without it, without being out of the race. And so that's
[22:59.640 -> 23:12.980] many seasons because there's only, you know, there's less than 20 races in an IndyCar season. I think one year was maybe 14 so but like Ovals take a lot of respect so
[23:12.980 -> 23:19.140] you know I think that Americans this was our this is our assessment as Americans
[23:19.140 -> 23:23.940] and like in an American series like the IndyCar series that Europeans were a
[23:23.940 -> 23:25.360] little less respectful
[23:25.360 -> 23:26.960] about the oval situation.
[23:26.960 -> 23:29.240] And maybe just because they were less familiar.
[23:29.240 -> 23:32.080] They thought they could kind of do certain things
[23:32.080 -> 23:34.680] to the car out there, but the gravity of the crash
[23:34.680 -> 23:35.520] is so much worse.
[23:35.520 -> 23:39.720] So it really took a lot of respect out there
[23:39.720 -> 23:47.840] to not swerve, cut off, and then also just, you know, leave the little room for
[23:47.840 -> 23:49.440] error because there's nowhere to go.
[23:49.440 -> 23:53.560] Like if you, if there's a mistake, someone in front of you and you are right there, there's
[23:53.560 -> 23:55.400] nowhere to go.
[23:55.400 -> 23:59.160] So, so they, they just take a lot of respect, but they're fun.
[23:59.160 -> 24:00.680] They're like threading the needle, man.
[24:00.680 -> 24:05.200] It's, you know, and then you got to be brave to sort of search out where the grip is.
[24:10.400 -> 24:16.160] That was definitely more of a NASCAR thing because the line would be sometimes at the very bottom and at the very top, but in IndyCar it tend to be much lower on the ovals, but we'd sometimes get
[24:16.160 -> 24:23.360] three wide racing. Yeah, wow. Another question from Instagram, Matthew, great name, would like
[24:23.360 -> 24:30.240] to know, what do you think the American Race F series need to do to steer more rookies towards F1? Do you think...
[24:30.240 -> 24:30.800] In America?
[24:30.800 -> 24:34.800] Yeah, do you think there's a path from American motorsport into Formula One?
[24:35.600 -> 24:35.840] Yeah.
[24:38.560 -> 24:43.440] I mean, somebody just, I think there's actually a lot of IndyCar drivers that would love to race
[24:43.440 -> 24:44.400] Formula One right now.
[24:44.400 -> 24:46.480] Paso Walsh, Kurt Schulz, it was Licks.
[24:46.480 -> 24:50.320] Exactly, yeah there's a bunch of guys that would like that opportunity.
[24:50.320 -> 24:56.880] So I think that, I think the fact that it's a much more of a road course racing series now.
[24:56.880 -> 25:04.000] When I first started in IndyCar it was, there was only three road courses on the entire schedule and now it's based, it's majority.
[25:04.000 -> 25:05.720] So I think that that is what makes the transition much more straightforward. courses on the entire schedule and now it's based it's mo it's majority so so I
[25:05.720 -> 25:08.840] think that that is what makes the transition much much more
[25:08.840 -> 25:13.440] straightforward yeah and then seats right you need a seat and there aren't a
[25:13.440 -> 25:17.320] lot of seats in Formula One see not a lot of seats there's a bunch of guys
[25:17.320 -> 25:21.700] that aren't going anywhere so I mean it's about catching that wave right the
[25:21.700 -> 25:25.100] wave of the drivers transitioning out of the sport
[25:25.100 -> 25:27.540] and opening up seats for new drivers.
[25:27.540 -> 25:32.700] And so sometimes that happens in bigger waves than others.
[25:32.700 -> 25:36.980] But if you're not in one of those waves and you're ready,
[25:36.980 -> 25:38.020] what are you going to do?
[25:38.020 -> 25:38.940] Go race IndyCar.
[25:38.940 -> 25:39.900] Yeah, absolutely.
[25:39.900 -> 25:41.780] We've seen a lot of drivers go the other way,
[25:41.780 -> 25:44.020] haven't we, from Formula One to IndyCar.
[25:44.020 -> 25:47.440] So it's maybe just time for a few to go the other way.
[25:47.440 -> 25:52.800] Now, I want to get into your thoughts on how we can get more women involved in motorsport.
[25:52.800 -> 25:57.200] How and when we're going to get a woman lining up on the grid in Formula One.
[25:57.200 -> 26:00.880] It's been 30 years since there was a woman racing in F1.
[26:00.880 -> 26:05.680] Are you encouraged by the steps being taken at the moment to get a woman on the grid or do you
[26:05.680 -> 26:11.360] think more needs to be done? Well you're assuming I want that, you're assuming that that is important
[26:11.360 -> 26:18.880] to me and it's not. Okay. You know it's always like an interesting stance I have on it. I think
[26:18.880 -> 26:28.520] that what makes a sport really popular is great racing. Like you can have half the field out there women and have it be follow the leader and it's not gonna be interesting to watch.
[26:28.520 -> 26:33.320] Good racing and that's what we have so much of these days in Formula One. I
[26:33.320 -> 26:37.080] mean pretty much everything other than Max is a toss-up for who's gonna be
[26:37.080 -> 26:41.800] really good that who's gonna be second, third, fourth, fifth that weekend. And and
[26:41.800 -> 26:48.640] so that's what makes it really appealing. And so I think as someone who obviously was a girl,
[26:50.180 -> 26:52.300] like you just got to come up like normal.
[26:52.300 -> 26:56.180] And I do have a little bit of, not a criticism,
[26:56.180 -> 27:00.180] but an opinion about female series is that it's fine.
[27:00.180 -> 27:01.920] It can give opportunity for some
[27:01.920 -> 27:04.940] who might not get a chance otherwise
[27:04.940 -> 27:06.660] to show what they can do,
[27:06.660 -> 27:07.960] but at the end of the day,
[27:07.960 -> 27:10.200] you're gonna have to race against guys.
[27:10.200 -> 27:12.120] And so, it's like, you know, I don't know,
[27:12.120 -> 27:13.240] do you watch golf?
[27:13.240 -> 27:14.160] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[27:14.160 -> 27:18.380] So when you watch golf, you watch that like a lot of times,
[27:18.380 -> 27:21.080] he'll, like a golfer that's maybe not ranked as high
[27:21.080 -> 27:23.600] will rise to the occasion with the one he's golfing with,
[27:23.600 -> 27:24.920] whoever he's golfing with.
[27:24.920 -> 27:27.960] And I think that tends to happen in all sports.
[27:27.960 -> 27:30.620] That's why you see some of the best wanting to run around,
[27:30.620 -> 27:32.600] like practice and be with the best
[27:32.600 -> 27:35.080] is because then they get better.
[27:35.080 -> 27:37.440] Like if you bench yourself off of something
[27:37.440 -> 27:39.960] that's not the best, then it's gonna affect
[27:39.960 -> 27:43.440] your effort level, your mental goal,
[27:43.440 -> 27:45.200] like what you envision yourself doing.
[27:45.200 -> 27:47.120] And so you really have to put yourself
[27:47.120 -> 27:48.600] in the toughest situations
[27:48.600 -> 27:50.180] and you might as well do it early
[27:50.180 -> 27:52.280] because it's only gonna get harder.
[27:52.280 -> 27:54.360] And so I just think that,
[27:55.320 -> 27:59.040] I think that giving proper tests
[27:59.040 -> 28:03.860] to be able to see if a driver of a female is fast enough
[28:03.860 -> 28:08.880] is a great way to know if there should be a next
[28:08.880 -> 28:13.120] step forward. But as far as anything beyond that, I think they should be racing with the
[28:13.120 -> 28:17.960] guys I think is racing in the same series. And they just got to get people around them
[28:17.960 -> 28:19.280] that believe in them.
[28:19.280 -> 28:22.200] Yeah, because looking at your career, you didn't have a W Series, did you? You didn't
[28:22.200 -> 28:24.680] have an F1 Academy. You fought your way to the top.
[28:24.680 -> 28:28.360] Or a minority anything. I giggled along the way, I'm like, I never
[28:28.360 -> 28:32.320] got any minority of money or anything like that, you know? And you did pretty well, you
[28:32.320 -> 28:38.480] know, and you got to the very top. So yeah, it just perhaps goes to show. You know, if
[28:38.480 -> 28:44.480] you were Stefano Domenicali right now, is there anything you'd be doing to change opportunities
[28:44.480 -> 28:45.280] for women in motorsport? Is there anything you'd be doing to change opportunities for women in motorsport?
[28:45.280 -> 28:50.400] Is there anything you think that he or Formula One could be doing better to at least perhaps
[28:50.400 -> 28:58.560] give some opportunities? I mean I think that, I think the more times that you put yourself in a
[28:58.560 -> 29:07.280] position to show what you can do, the better off you are. And it's better to be in the car than not.
[29:07.280 -> 29:08.280] Yeah.
[29:08.280 -> 29:15.280] You know so I think that just more cars, more track time and more opportunities to show
[29:15.280 -> 29:17.400] what you can do is just always a good thing.
[29:17.400 -> 29:18.400] Yeah absolutely.
[29:18.400 -> 29:23.560] Doug on Instagram would like to know is there a woman on the radar through the junior categories
[29:23.560 -> 29:29.420] that you believe has the speed to be competitive in Formula One? I don't know
[29:29.420 -> 29:35.360] you know we were talking about Jamie Chadwick last night and she's doing some
[29:35.360 -> 29:40.480] racing over in the States I think she's linked up with Andretti and you know
[29:40.480 -> 29:43.880] that obviously she seems like she's a pretty good candidate to have an
[29:43.880 -> 29:49.760] opportunity but but otherwise I don't really't really know. I don't, I don't follow it super closely.
[29:49.760 -> 29:55.440] Um, there's Haley Deegan who does NASCAR off-road kind of stuff that is pretty young. I mean,
[29:55.440 -> 29:59.840] she's been driving for a really long time, but she's, um, you know, I think about how long she's
[29:59.840 -> 30:05.280] been around and then I'm like, wow, she's only, I don't, I'm not sure, exactly, maybe 21 or something like that. 2021.
[30:05.640 -> 30:07.200] Um, so I'm like, wow, she's pretty young.
[30:07.200 -> 30:11.760] So, um, yeah, there's, and then there's probably, I'm sure there's others that
[30:11.760 -> 30:17.720] I'm totally not mentioning that I, that I don't see, I, I don't really watch a lot
[30:17.720 -> 30:23.160] of racing when I'm not doing it when I'm not out there, when I'm not, I watch more
[30:23.160 -> 30:28.680] because I'm part of the broadcast and I need to be informed and know what's going on but you're not
[30:28.680 -> 30:34.120] gonna find me like on my vacation weekends just catching up on all levels
[30:34.120 -> 30:39.240] of motorsports so I'm I'm not it's a it's not a soup it's not an interest of
[30:39.240 -> 30:44.880] mine outside the car yeah but I do love sharing my experiences and relating it
[30:44.880 -> 30:47.600] to the fans watching and working with
[30:47.600 -> 30:53.040] really fun people at Sky. Yeah, I mean you are absolutely a role model for young drivers,
[30:53.040 -> 30:57.120] for young women drivers everywhere, aren't you? Because of your path and what you've done,
[30:57.120 -> 31:02.480] absolutely 100%. I want to talk about Formula 1 today. A question on Instagram,
[31:02.480 -> 31:06.240] what driver would be the best if all drivers had the same car?
[31:06.240 -> 31:09.080] So if we put all of the 20 Formula One drivers
[31:09.080 -> 31:12.440] in RB19s, say, for this season,
[31:12.440 -> 31:13.960] who would you pick as the one,
[31:13.960 -> 31:14.860] maybe apart from Max,
[31:14.860 -> 31:17.360] because we're probably gonna say that Max
[31:17.360 -> 31:19.880] would be bossing that in the RB19, but yeah.
[31:22.000 -> 31:23.480] I mean, it's pretty tough for me
[31:23.480 -> 31:25.840] to not keep thinking about Fernando Alonso.
[31:25.840 -> 31:32.960] I mean, just his ability to be, I mean, he's 41, he's like re-emerged as such a,
[31:33.600 -> 31:42.480] such a, so competitive, and just doing that over and over again, like his second coming,
[31:42.480 -> 31:50.600] I think is just so impressive. So I think that he's someone I consider to be, I mean, you can't exclude Max.
[31:50.600 -> 31:55.640] I think when we're talking about all, all, all, when you apply all the styles, I mean,
[31:55.640 -> 31:59.800] that would be a pretty great, pretty great duo right there between Max and Alonzo because
[31:59.800 -> 32:02.440] they're both so, they're both pretty aggressive too.
[32:02.440 -> 32:06.600] So that would be fun to watch. I mean
[32:06.600 -> 32:10.160] I'd be really curious to see where Lewis fell in that too because you know I
[32:10.160 -> 32:15.600] feel like he's just he doesn't obviously he's had so much success with all of his
[32:15.600 -> 32:22.080] championships but yeah I think I think that he might be really really close
[32:22.080 -> 32:24.960] right there and especially when you take into a race consideration the length of
[32:24.960 -> 32:27.680] it he's just so consistent he doesn't make a lot of mistakes and so he might be really, really close right there. And especially when you take into a race consideration the length of it, he's just so consistent. He doesn't make a lot of mistakes.
[32:27.680 -> 32:31.760] And so he'd be snatching the lead when those two are going at it.
[32:31.760 -> 32:36.800] Yeah. Yeah. Do you know, I mean, are you surprised that we haven't seen a situation
[32:36.800 -> 32:40.000] where we do get the best drivers in the world all in the same machinery?
[32:40.000 -> 32:41.280] Because they tried to do that.
[32:41.280 -> 32:42.160] Did they? Yeah.
[32:42.160 -> 32:45.000] They tried to do that back in the day with the IROC series
[32:45.000 -> 32:46.640] and back in the States.
[32:46.640 -> 32:51.400] And the bottom line is, and anybody in motorsports
[32:51.400 -> 32:53.920] will really know, there's no two things that are, no two cars,
[32:53.920 -> 32:55.540] no two engines are the same.
[32:55.540 -> 32:58.040] It's just going to be small differences, especially
[32:58.040 -> 32:58.680] in the engines.
[32:58.680 -> 33:01.680] Like the torque curves, and this is why you have like,
[33:01.680 -> 33:03.600] you know, I'm going to my old go-karting days,
[33:03.600 -> 33:06.360] but you'd get like the, you'd get the dyno to give it the,
[33:06.360 -> 33:07.640] you'd see the power torque.
[33:07.640 -> 33:09.960] And these are essentially the same engine,
[33:09.960 -> 33:12.880] but they all produce a different result just based on,
[33:12.880 -> 33:16.400] you know, the harmonics, how perfect the bore size.
[33:16.400 -> 33:19.000] There's just so many different things that contribute
[33:19.000 -> 33:21.240] to just making these little bit of differences.
[33:21.240 -> 33:31.160] And so you just never gonna get two identical cars. It's just, it's just like impossible. Paul would like to know on Instagram
[33:31.160 -> 33:37.400] what's your favorite IndyCar and F1 track? It's quite a broad spectrum. Yeah, my favorite...
[33:37.400 -> 33:42.240] What's your favorite one? I mean my favorite, let's just go with like favorite track. I always loved
[33:42.240 -> 33:49.720] racing at Richmond and Martinsville, Those were two really fun short tracks. What's the key ingredients for you? What do you love
[33:49.720 -> 33:53.880] seeing in a race track? Racing, like a lot of passing. Yeah. Like cars that go off, like
[33:53.880 -> 33:57.640] where the car is not the same the whole run. It just, it fades and you have to
[33:57.640 -> 34:02.040] manage it and if you manage it better, have a better long run car, you can get
[34:02.040 -> 34:05.880] by so many. Like I just, I love that. I also love traditional passing tracks
[34:05.880 -> 34:07.280] when it comes to ovals,
[34:07.280 -> 34:10.540] the ones that aren't like four wide side by side.
[34:10.540 -> 34:13.340] I liked more those traditional passing
[34:13.340 -> 34:15.840] where it's hard to run too wide.
[34:15.840 -> 34:18.100] It's a bit more of a setup of the pass then
[34:18.100 -> 34:20.800] instead of just momentum and running a different line.
[34:22.720 -> 34:26.340] I enjoyed, I really loved the rhythm of Mid-Ohio if you could get that right
[34:26.340 -> 34:31.520] and an IndyCar that was fun I love I really liked Brands Hatch yeah yeah I
[34:31.520 -> 34:36.980] mean I raced the full circuit the full GP circuit in England yeah yeah I thought
[34:36.980 -> 34:41.880] Brands Hatch was a pretty cool track actually yeah I hated Thruxton even
[34:41.880 -> 34:46.240] though I know nobody races there is like's like junior level I'm sure. But I enjoyed Brands Hatch.
[34:48.320 -> 34:48.960] That's pretty good.
[34:48.960 -> 34:49.920] Yeah, yeah.
[34:49.920 -> 34:52.320] And I love Indianapolis. I love Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
[34:52.880 -> 34:54.880] There's just so many levels of love for that.
[34:54.880 -> 34:55.360] Yeah.
[34:55.360 -> 35:00.880] Fans, the size, the atmosphere, the energy, the speed, the success I had.
[35:00.880 -> 35:02.720] Final question from Instagram.
[35:02.720 -> 35:06.000] If you could make a guest appearance at any European circuit,
[35:06.000 -> 35:11.680] which would you choose? As a driver? As a driver, yeah. To drive it. Yeah, this is your, this is,
[35:11.680 -> 35:16.160] this is your, you're coming back, you know, it's the, you know, there's big, big swan song,
[35:16.160 -> 35:21.360] big media attention around it, you're driving one final race in Europe, which is that circuit that
[35:21.360 -> 35:26.600] you choose? Maybe it's Brands Hatch.
[35:28.280 -> 35:31.000] Yeah, but it has to be on the schedule, right? Yeah, go on, let's say it has to be on the F1 schedule.
[35:31.000 -> 35:33.640] I mean, I raced at Spa in a Formula Ford.
[35:33.640 -> 35:34.480] Yeah.
[35:34.480 -> 35:35.920] So going there in a Formula One car
[35:35.920 -> 35:38.560] and going up the hill and like,
[35:38.560 -> 35:40.920] dude, I found it hard to be flat in a Formula Ford.
[35:40.920 -> 35:43.880] Like, I can't imagine what it's like in an F1 car,
[35:43.880 -> 35:45.000] but, or what the
[35:45.000 -> 35:47.960] feeling is it might be easy to be flat out going up the hill just from the
[35:47.960 -> 35:53.080] downforce but but just that track is somewhere that I had experienced at such
[35:53.080 -> 35:57.960] a low level of motorsport that yeah it'd be it's go back to the experience it and
[35:57.960 -> 36:03.760] was like Blanc-Chamond or something like really really fast King yeah maybe maybe
[36:03.760 -> 36:08.240] there yeah yeah that would be a more fun track than
[36:08.240 -> 36:09.240] Silverstone.
[36:09.240 -> 36:14.520] Yeah, okay. Tickets are selling fast, so we'll try and make it happen. So just finally, we
[36:14.520 -> 36:17.320] know that you've got a lot of other interests now. You've obviously retired from motorsport,
[36:17.320 -> 36:22.680] but I've got down here, entrepreneur, author, podcaster, winemaker. You're pretty busy,
[36:22.680 -> 36:25.280] right? With stuff post-racing.
[36:25.280 -> 36:29.640] And like many things were going on before like the wine I bought the property in
[36:29.640 -> 36:35.520] Napa Valley in 2009 so I didn't retire until 2018 so some of these projects have
[36:35.520 -> 36:39.880] been going on since before but yeah the podcast keeps me really busy I do it as
[36:39.880 -> 36:43.280] really a selfish indulgence into people that I'm fascinated with and topics that
[36:43.280 -> 36:47.720] I want to learn about. I promise that if I talk to anyone longer than 45 minutes
[36:47.720 -> 36:51.900] that I or a half an hour that I would mention aliens because I said oh if
[36:51.900 -> 36:54.880] anyone talks to me long enough I will surely mention aliens. And you'll know if
[36:54.880 -> 36:58.680] they're listening right yeah yeah. So we talked about all that kind of stuff
[36:58.680 -> 37:04.120] Joe and psychology and all kinds of things but that the wine the name is
[37:04.120 -> 37:06.460] Somnium which means dream in Latin
[37:06.460 -> 37:08.820] because I really just had a dream one day
[37:08.820 -> 37:11.240] to have a winery when I was standing,
[37:11.240 -> 37:14.020] drinking a glass of wine, acceptably, of course,
[37:14.020 -> 37:15.440] at 10 a.m., and I was like,
[37:15.440 -> 37:17.900] hmm, I wanna have something like this someday,
[37:17.900 -> 37:21.340] and made that happen, and so, yeah,
[37:21.340 -> 37:23.020] and then I vacationed a whole bunch, too.
[37:23.020 -> 37:24.740] So, like, for instance, right now,
[37:24.740 -> 37:25.320] I'm coming off
[37:25.320 -> 37:26.860] of literally being on vacation
[37:26.860 -> 37:29.080] for the last four or five weeks.
[37:29.080 -> 37:33.060] Since the Montreal F1 race and being here in Budapest,
[37:33.060 -> 37:35.040] I've literally been on vacation the whole time
[37:35.040 -> 37:39.280] through Greece and Italy and Monaco and Mallorca
[37:39.280 -> 37:41.260] and it's been a really, really fun.
[37:41.260 -> 37:43.360] So I enjoy doing that because it's stuff
[37:43.360 -> 37:51.280] that I never had a chance to do when I was driving. I just, if I had a week, one week a year, it was great, you know. And so
[37:51.280 -> 37:56.880] having the opportunity to do those sort of things now is really, a really cool thing.
[37:56.880 -> 37:58.800] Yeah. You have to come back every summer.
[37:58.800 -> 38:03.440] Okay. I love it. I want to be a European in the summer. I want Europe in the summer every year.
[38:03.440 -> 38:04.240] I'm so ready for that.
[38:04.240 -> 38:09.200] Maybe not in the winter. No. No. I'll go back to Arizona and I live. I bet. Danica,
[38:09.200 -> 38:11.600] thank you so much for your time. Really appreciate it. Thank you. That was fun. Thank you.