BROOKLYN, Mich. — Danica Patrick’s eyes told the story as she stood on pit road, looking like she had suffered what she called “the worst nightmare of my life” in Sunday’s IndyCar Firestone Indy 400.
She could only gaze at the scoreboard where her car No. 7 was in seventh place.
Patrick was convinced that her chance at an elusive IndyCar victory had finally arrived and she would drive into victory lane in the final IndyCar race at Michigan Int’l Speedway.
Patrick was involved in a three-car battle for the victory with her AGR teammates Tony Kanaan and Marco Andretti when the word came over the radio from her crew that the sensor on the right-rear wheel indicated her tire was going flat.
Patrick was heartbroken as she pulled into the pits on lap 186 to change the tire, 14 laps from what could have been the finish of her first victory.
“I’m so mad,” Patrick said. “Of course I’m going to think of myself first. I thought that was my chance to win. I was 80 percent sure that was me.
“I could not believe when they told me my right rear was going flat.”
Patrick was able to climb out of her car and congratulate her teammate and race winner Kanaan and second-place finisher Andretti in victory lane.
“We were working like a team out there and weren’t pulling away like Scott Sharp like we wanted to but trust me, when we started dicing it up, he wasn’t going to hang with us,” Patrick said. “It would have all been up for grabs.”
Patrick knew she had a fast car and was just waiting for the right moment to make the move that would win her the race.
“This was my race to lose,” Patrick said. “I had the car to win the race. It would have only been through a little bit of bad luck that would have cost us. But we didn’t win the race and it’s frustrating. It’s not often you get eight out of 10 good guys out of the race and leave the rest.
“It’s frustrating.”
Now, she continues to answer the worst question that she finally wants to answer.
“For me, I have this burden and this question that never ends, ‘when are you going to win?’” Patrick said. “I just want to do it so nobody is going to ask me any more. I just want to get that done so I can say, ‘There you go. Leave me alone. Let’s go for No. 2.’
“The win is going to happen. I’m sure of it.”