IndyCar Win for Danica

Local girl makes good. Roscoe, Illinois' Danica Patrick, Tribune:

MOTEGI, Japan - Danica Patrick was always sure a woman could win a race. And now the questions about her will surely stop.

Patrick made it to the place she wanted to be for so long -- Victory Lane. She became the first female winner in IndyCar history Sunday, capturing the Indy Japan 300 in her 50th career start.

"I'm glad it finally happened," the 26-year-old driver said. "But I would be lying if I told you I didn't think it would be me."

Her owner was ecstatic, insisting more victories await. Her family could not congratulate her enough. All of which made Patrick a bit teary.

"When it actually happened, maybe it was a little anticlimactic," she said. "Then the emotions came out and that was a little girly of me."

According to the reporter, she won the race with a combination of cool composure and shrewd strategy.

UPDATE: NY Times does a story. In addition the obvious, one more obvious NY Times theme--they liked it that she won by conserving fuel:

Patrick said her team tried to conserve fuel from the first laps of Sunday’s race. When three drivers running at the front of the pack had to make pit stops for fuel in the final 10 laps of the 200-lap race, she charged into second place, behind Castroneves.

Castroneves had enough fuel to finish the race without making a pit stop, but he had to conserve what little he had. Patrick, who lost the 2005 Indy 500 because she had to stretch her fuel supply, took the lead with two laps left on Sunday and won easily.

“In recognition of Danica’s talents, she did a good job,” Castroneves said in a postrace news conference. “She passed me fair and square. I didn’t have enough fuel, even if I wanted to, to fight with her.”