Danica Patrick, 25, Became the first woman to lead the Indy 500 in 2005 and finished fourth Will start 8th.
Sarah Fisher, 26 Making her seventh appearance at Indy Best finish was 21st in 2004 Will start 21st
Milka Duno, 35 First Hispanic woman to compete at Indy Overcame a terrible crash at the Brickyard two weeks ago Will start 29th
Over the past month, ever since it became apparent that today would be a historic one at the Indianapolis 500, race-car driver Sarah Fisher has been asked the question so many times that she usually finishes the query for the reporter.
'How do you feel about having three women in the field?' she recites, then adds, 'I feel great about it.'
The race billed as 'The Greatest Spectacle in Racing' generally needs no extra hype, but it gets some today, as 25-year-old Danica Patrick, 26-year-old Fisher and the rookie, 35-year-old Milka Duno of Venezuela, will give the Indy 500 three women among its 33 starters for the first time in its 91-year history.
'I don't [need] that for motivation, but I think it is neat,' Fisher said. 'I'm glad to be a part of it.'
Patrick, meanwhile, has said all along that she could care less, using an 'I'm-in-it-to-win-it' attitude she reiterated in a teleconference last week.
'It doesn't make a difference to me,' she said. 'I don't look back. I don't think about anybody else. You are always trying to beat everyone, no matter [their gender].'
Duno's take: 'I think it's very attractive when in a male sport there are women. But you have to be good. If you are not good, nobody [takes] care of you. You're not here making interviews if I drive bad, no?'
Duno will become the first Hispanic woman to drive in the race. She made her IndyCar debut at Kansas, where she started 21st and finished 14th.
Fisher is a perennial fan favorite back after an unwanted two-year break. She will be making her seventh Indy 500 appearance, having made her first start as a 19-year-old.
However, Patrick is by far the most famous of the three women, thanks to her cover-girl attractiveness and the fact that she's the only women to have ever led in the race, a feat she accomplished in 2005 when she finished fourth. While the other women are in the happy-to-be-here mode, Patrick acknowledges that's no longer good enough for her.
'I guess I do feel more pressure this year,' she said Wednesday. 'Many things that contribute to that, though. As the years go on, you get more impatient. You just want to go out there and run up front.'
Patrick qualified eighth with an average four-lap speed of 224.074. Fisher is 21st at 221.228 and Duno is 29th at 219.228. Of the three, only Patrick is being given a realistic chance at winning.
The same three women also started April 29 at Kansas Speedway, where Patrick posted the highest finish among the three, seventh.
'While I am honored to be a part of it, I don't really think about it,' Patrick said. 'I think more than anything the sponsors are recognizing the marketing ability that they get from it and the attention that it draws.'
One of the today's favorites, Dan Wheldon, said Wednesday that most male drivers in the IndyCar Series welcome today's historic convergence.
'I think it's good,' he said. 'It seems like the series right now is in the spotlight, largely [because of the presence of three women]. A lot of people are talking about it, the new people that come to the series. That's good.'
The first time two women competed in the same Indy 500 was 2000, when Fisher and Lyn St. James made the grid. Today's race will mark the eighth consecutive Indy 500 with at least one woman in the field.
'I think the women show that they can do anything they want,' Duno said. 'You see women as presidents, ministers, economists, engineers, doctors, race car drivers. When you talk about a profession, it doesn't matter if you are a woman or a man. The importance is how good you are in the same activity.'
The first woman to race in the 500, Janet Guthrie, broke the gender barrier in 1977. She told the Associated Press last week that the milestone is a long time coming.
'Of course, I would have liked to have seen it happen sooner,' she said. 'But I'm pleased, even though it has happened slowly.'
Guthrie said true acceptance will only come when a woman wins the race, noting that Duno and Fisher don't have the adequate financial backing and equipment to win the race.
Patrick does.
Her Andretti Green Racing teammates at Indy today - Michael and Marco Andretti, Tony Kanaan and Dario Franchitti - have all said it is only a matter of time until Patrick gets an IndyCar victory.
'She's right there,' said Mario Andretti, Michael's father. 'She's a force to be reckoned with.'
Indy 500 Lineup R-rookie ROW 1
1. (3) w-Helio Castroneves, Dallara, 225.817 mph.
2. (11) Tony Kanaan, Dallara, 225.757.
3. (27) Dario Franchitti, Dallara, 225.191. ROW 2
4. (9) Scott Dixon, Dallara, 225.122.
5. (6) w-Sam Hornish Jr., Dallara, 225.109.
6. (10) w-Dan Wheldon, Dallara, 224.641. ROW 3
7. (12) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara, 224.410.
8. (7) Danica Patrick, Dallara, 224.076.
9. (26) Marco Andretti, Dallara, 223.299. ROW 4
10. (2) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara, 222.877.
11. (39) Michael Andretti, Dallara, 222.789.
12. (8) Scott Sharp, Dallara, 223.875. ROW 5
13. (17) Jeff Simmons, Dallara, 223.693.
14. (20) Ed Carpenter, Dallara, 223.495.
15. (14) Darren Manning, Dallara, 223.471. ROW 6
16. (15) w-Buddy Rice, Dallara, 222.826.
17. (55) Kosuke Matsuura, Dallara, 222.595.
18. (22) A.J. Foyt IV, Dallara, 222.413. ROW 7
19. (4) Vitor Meira, Dallara, 222.333.
20. (02) Davey Hamilton, Dallara, 222.327.
21. (5) Sarah Fisher, Dallara, 221.960. ROW 8
22. (99) w-Buddy Lazier, Dallara, 221.380.
23. (24) Roger Yasukawa, Dallara, 222.654.
24. (33) John Andretti, Dallara, 221.756. ROW 9
25. (50) w-Al Unser Jr., Dallara, 220.876.
26. (98) Alex Barron, Dallara, 220.471.
27. (19) Jon Herb, Dallara, 220.108. ROW 10
28. (21) Jaques Lazier, Panoz, 219.409.
29. (23) r-Milka Duno, Dallara, 219.228.
30. (25) Marty Roth, Dallara, 218.922. ROW 11
31. (77) Roberto Moreno, Panoz, 220.299.
32. (91) Richie Hearn, Dallara, 219.860.
33. (31) r-Phil Giebler, Panoz, 219.637.
