Danica Patrick Made History With Daytona 500 Pole Race; Set To Race Jeff Gordon

Danica Patrick made history when she bested the rest of her competition on the track at the Daytona 500 Pole Race on Sunday. Next Sunday, she will open the NASCAR season alongside Jeff Gordon, who placed second in the pole race.

Patrick earned the top qualifying time in the Sprint Cup Series, which is NASCAR’s top circuit. At 30, she becomes the first woman to ever conquer this feat. While she’s made the history books before in both Indianapolis and Japan, this victory marks the biggest of her stock-car career.

“I was brought up to be the fastest driver, not the fastest girl,” Patrick said, according to The New York Times. “That was instilled in me from very young, from the beginning. Then I feel like thriving in those moments, where the pressure’s on, has also been a help for me. I also feel like I’ve been lucky in my career to be with good teams and have good people around me. I don’t think any of it would have been possible without that.

“For those reasons, I’ve been lucky enough to make history, be the first woman to do many things. I really just hope that I don’t stop doing that. We have a lot more history to make.”

Patrick began IndyCar racing in 2005, but in 2010 she opted to transition to stock-car racing and by 2012 had completely switched over. By winning the race on Sunday, she gets to bypass Thursday’s race that will decide the rest of the field for next Sunday. Although winning the pole race is a big accomplishment for Patrick, she’ll be looking to finish higher at the end of this NASCAR season than her 10th place finish last year.

Patrick, who filed for divorce from her husband of seven years, Paul Hospenthal, in January, is currently dating fellow NASCAR driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. She’ll be battling her new boyfriend for Sprint Cup Rookie of the Year honors.