Third-year Danica still looking for first checkered flag

RICHMOND, Va. -- Danica Patrick is in her third season as the most talked-about driver in the IndyCar Series.

And the still-winless Patrick doesn't know how much 'Danicamania' will intensify when she takes her first checkered flag.

She's sure of one thing, though -- it's a matter of when, not if.

"It's going to be nice to do it. It's probably going to come when everyone least expects it, including myself, but it's time," she said. "It's time to just do it and get it over with, and I can't tell you that I'm going to be over-the-moon ecstatic.

"I'm going to be relieved."

Since arriving in the series in 2005 and surging to the top in popularity by leading the Indianapolis 500 for 19 laps and finishing fourth, Patrick feels like she has moved closer to becoming the first woman to win a race.

She finished a career-best third earlier this year at Texas. She said she's also gaining familiarity with her new Andretti Green Racing team.

Dan Wheldon, 2005 series champion, openly admits he is attracted by the packed houses that NASCAR draws for its races. But he said he doesn't want Patrick, or anyone else who could boost ratings, to win for any reason other than that she's earned it.

"You want to see her win because she's warranted of winning," Wheldon said Thursday. "And I'm sure she will do (it) eventually. At the end of the day, I like to go to each individual race and see the person who performs the best win."As the Rookie of the Year with Rahal Letterman Racing in 2005, she said her equipment was superior and helped her to a 12th-place finish overall. Last year, her experience helped her finish ninth in the standings even though her car struggled.

This year, even her teammates are anticipating a victory and joking that they'll shave off her beloved long black hair to welcome her to the ranks of race winners.

"They're also a little bit mischievous," she said of Dario Franchitti, Tony Kanaan and Marco Andretti. "Obviously, they know that I like my hair."

The series will make its seventh visit to Richmond International Raceway this weekend, and Saturday night's SunTrust Indy Challenge will be the second consecutive event run on a short oval. Last week, Patrick was 13th in the Iowa Corn Indy 250.

But while Patrick has finished 10th and 15th in her two previous starts at Richmond, she said returning to the series' shortest track gets her motivated.

"I think the racing is very good," she said.

It also changes throughout the race as drivers contend with a setting sun that cools the track, tire wear, and the shift in weight of the car as fuel burns off.

Last year, Sam Hornish Jr., found the perfect combination at RIR, leading 212 of the 250 laps to become the first two-time winner on the traditional NASCAR track.

Patrick hopes to hit the mark on Saturday night.

"I don't know if there's any way to really know," she said. "I'm lucky in the sense that it's a big deal when I do good things and when stories crop up, but that would be quite the story, so I don't know if there's any way to judge what it will be like."