How many women have raced in NASCAR Cup Series as Katherine Legge debut confirmed
Katherine Legge will join an exclusive group of drivers when she makes her NASCAR Cup Series debut at the Shriners Children's 500.
Katherine Legge will join an exclusive group when she makes her NASCAR Cup Series debut at the Shriners Children's 500 in Phoenix.
The 44-year-old will be the 21st woman to drive in the Cup Series, joining names like Danica Patrick, who is the most recent driver to have made her name in NASCAR's top flight. For Legge, her NASCAR debut has been a long time coming, having spent the last handful of years planning for the perfect event to join.
The British racing star has decades of experience, with NASCAR being one of the only disciplines she has yet to delve into fully. And with Legge making her Cup Series debut, the star understands that her appearance on the biggest stage carries significant expectations.
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"I have to prove competence at the end of the day, right?" she said in an interview with Road and Track. "I don’t think anybody expects me to go out and set the world on fire and be competitive because it’s the most competitive championship in the world.
"I just don’t want to make any mistakes and look silly or look incapable. I think the competitiveness will come with experience. It’s like asking Jimmie Johnson to go and be competitive in IndyCar straight away. There’s a lot that you have to learn before that can happen; it’s the same in NASCAR."
The star also hopes that showcasing her abilities at the Shriners Children's 500 will help those in positions of power understand that women can be as capable as men. "I don’t want to just be a female driver for the sake of ticking a diversity box, right?" she added.
"I want to be there on merit, and I want to be a good example for everybody that’s coming up behind me. I also know that everybody has an opinion on it, whether it’s an informed opinion or not. I’ve learned over the years to take both ends with pinch of salt and ignore it because I think it’s just a more extreme opinion.
"So, I have to shut that side of things out and just focus on the job that I have to do as a race car driver. Because I've always just thought, I'm just another driver. The car doesn't know the difference, right? And so I just want to be seen as another driver, but that's kind of ignorant to say, because it's impossible to do."
Now, Legge joins a very exclusive group when she drives the No. 78 for Live Fast Motorsports at Phoenix. Of note, only three women have started more than 10 races in their NASCAR career.
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Women who have raced in the NASCAR Cup Series
- Danica Patrick - (Active from) 2012-18 - 191 starts
- Shawna Robinson - 2001-02 - 8 starts
- Laura Lane - 1994 - 0 starts
- Patty Moise - 1987-89 - 5 starts
- Marta Leonard - 1986-89 - 0 starts
- Robin McCall - 1982 - 2 starts
- Christine Beckers - 1977 - 1 start
- Lella Lombardi - 1977 - 1 start
- Janet Guthrie - 1976-80 - 33 starts
- Ariene Hiss - 1976 - 0 starts
- Goldie Parsons - 1965 - 1 start
- FiFi Scott - 1955 - 2 starts
- Marian Pagan - 1954 - 1 start
- Ann Bunselmeyer - 1950 - 1 start
- Ann Chester - 1950 - 2 starts
- Dorothy Shull - 1950 - 0 starts
- Ann Slaasted - 1950 - 1 start
- Louise Smith - 1949-52 - 11 starts
- Sara Christian - 1949-50 - 7 starts
- Ethel Mobley - 1949 - 2 starts
