Bonnie Henn

Bonnie, centre, with Janet Guthrie and Lyn St James

Bonnie Henn raced Ferraris and Porsches in IMSA between 1979 and 1985, usually as part of her father, Preston Henn's, team. She and Preston were IMSA’s first father-daughter racing team. Her other team-mates included Kathy Rude, Janet Guthrie and Desiré Wilson.

Bonnie’s career developed in tandem with her father’s. He only began racing two years before she did, having made his money buying disused drive-in cinemas, which he turned into flea markets.

Her first major finish was a seventeenth place at the 1979 Sebring 12 Hours, driving a Ferrari 365 GTB/4 with Lyn St James and Janet Guthrie. They were sponsored by Thunderbird Swap Shop, the Henn family business. Bonnie also entered the IMSA Daytona Finale, driving the Ferrari with Hal Sahlman. They were 28th overall, fifteenth in the GTO class. In between, Preston Henn ran an AMC Pacer for Bonnie in the Daytona 6 Hours. She did not finish. The underpowered Pacer must have been a stark contrast to the Ferrari she was more used to.

In contrast to her first season, 1980 was very quiet, as Bonnie concentrated on developing her driving skills. She was linked to a drive in an Alfa Romeo Alfetta in the Daytona 6 Hours, but did not start. The car belonged to Janis Taylor, who drove instead, with Del Russo Taylor.

1981 could have been her first attempt at the Daytona 24 Hours. Preston put together a Swap Shop team of himself, Bonnie, Desiré Wilson and Marty Hinze. Although she had practised in the team’s Porsche 935, she decided that she did not have enough experience to tackle the race itself, and stepped down. She did race the 935 at the Daytona Finale in November. Preston was her team-mate. They did not finish.

Desiré Wilson became something of a mentor to Bonnie at this time. She gave her advanced driving tuition and supported her through a part-season in IMSA in 1982. Desiré’s race seat with the Swap Shop team was largely down to her work with Bonnie.

Bonnie and Desiré aimed to start 1982 by teaming up again for the Daytona 24 Hours, but Bonnie, along with Janet Guthrie, dropped out. The three worked together again at the Sebring 12 Hours, where they drove a Ferrari 512BB/LM in “Miss Budweiser” colours for North American Racing. For her next race, the Charlotte IMSA round, she shared a Swap Shop Porsche 935 with Preston, and was rewarded with an eleventh place. Her best result of the year was a fourth place in the Daytona 250 Miles. She had jumped into the 935 of Preston and Randy Lanier after her own Swap Shop 935 expired after eight laps.

She raced with Desiré again at Mosport and Road America. At Mosport, she was 24th. Later in the season, she and Preston travelled to Japan to race in the Fuji 6 Hours, in the Ferrari. They crashed out on the tenth lap. At the end of the year, she decided that she no longer wanted to race. Sadly, this meant that Desiré Wilson’s place in the team became redundant.

Having announced her retirement once, Bonnie was persuaded back into action in 1983 with an all-female team, led by Deborah Gregg and carrying her Brumos colours. The third driver in the team was Kathy Rude. They drove a Porsche 924 Carrera in the Daytona 24 Hours and gave Bonnie her best finish of her career: thirteenth. They were sixth in class. Bonnie’s last event with the team was the Sebring 12 Hours. Driving the same car, she was 35th with her two team-mates. After Sebring, she retired for good, aged just 27.

She died suddenly in 2006. She was 49.

(Image from www.lynstjames.com)

Women Drivers in Indycar: the championship results

Sarah Fisher and Janet Guthrie, 2002

This post lists the championship finishing position of women drivers in the USA's elite single-seater racing series, referred to in the title, for convenience, as Indycar. The championship has been run by a series of sanctioning bodies over the years. Between 1996 and 2003, two championships were held, run by rival bodies. Results for both of these have been included here.

No women at all raced in Indycar and its antecedents until the mid-1970s. Women were not even allowed in the Indianapolis pit area, in any capacity, until 1971.

Results of women drivers in the Indianapolis 500, the series' blue riband event, can be found here.

USAC National Championship

1976

Janet Guthrie (Vollstedt-Offenhauser) – unplaced (4 races)

Arlene Hiss (Eagle-Offenhauser) – unplaced (1 race)

1977

Janet Guthrie (Lightning-Offenhauser) – unplaced (3 races)

1978

Janet Guthrie (Wildcat-DGS) – unplaced (1 race)

1979

Janet Guthrie (Lola-Cosworth/Offenhauser) – 15^th (3 races)

SCCA/CART Indycar Series

1979

Janet Guthrie (Lola-Cosworth) – unplaced (1 race)

PPG Indy Car World Series

1983

Desiré Wilson (March Cosworth)– 28^th (9 races)

1984

Desiré Wilson (March-Cosworth) – unplaced (2 races; did not qualify for either)

1986

Desiré Wilson (March-Cosworth) – unplaced (3 races)

1992

Lyn St. James (Lola-Chevrolet) - 30^th (1 race)

1993

Lyn St. James (Lola-Chevrolet/Ford) – unplaced (7 races)

1994

Lyn St. James (Lola-Ford) – unplaced (1 race)

1995

Lyn St. James (Lola-Ford) – unplaced (3 races)

Indy Racing League

1996

Lyn St. James (Lola-Ford) – 12th (3 races)

1997

Lyn St. James (Dallara-Infiniti) – 42nd (1 race)

1998

Lyn St. James (G Force-Infiniti) – unplaced (1 race – did not qualify)

1999

Sarah Fisher (Dallara-Oldsmobile) – 46^th (1 race)

Lyn St. James (G Force-Oldsmobile) – unplaced (1 race – did not qualify)

Indy Racing Northern Light Series

2000

Sarah Fisher (Riley&Scott/Dallara-Oldsmobile) – 18^th (8 races)

Lyn St. James (G Force- Oldsmobile) – 49th (1 race)

2001

Sarah Fisher (Dallara-Oldsmobile) – 19^th (13 races)

Indycar Series

2002

Sarah Fisher (G Force-Nissan) – 18^th (10 races)

2003

Sarah Fisher (Dallara-Chevrolet) – 18^th (15 races)

2004

Sarah Fisher (Dallara-Toyota) – 30^th (1 race)

2005

Danica Patrick (Panoz-Honda) – 12^th (17 races)

2006

Danica Patrick (Panoz/Dallara-Honda) – 9^th (13 races)

Sarah Fisher (Dallara-Honda) – 25^th (2 races)

Champ Car:

Katherine Legge (Lola-Ford) – 16^th (14 races)

2007

Danica Patrick (Dallara-Honda) – 7^th (17 races)

Sarah Fisher (Dallara-Honda) – 17^th (17 races)

Milka Duno (Dallara-Honda) – 20^th (7 races)

Champ Car:

Katherine Legge (Panoz-Cosworth) – 15^th (14 races)

2008

Danica Patrick (Dallara-Honda) – 6^th (17 races)

Milka Duno (Dallara-Honda) – 25^th (11 races)

Sarah Fisher (Dallara Honda) – 34^th (3 races)

2009

Danica Patrick (Dallara-Honda) – 5^th (17 races)

Milka Duno (Dallara-Honda) – 24^th (9 races)

Sarah Fisher (Dallara Honda) – 25^th (6 races)

2010

Danica Patrick (Dallara-Honda) – 10^th (17 races)

Simona de Silvestro (Dallara-Honda) – 19^th (17 races)

Milka Duno (Dallara-Honda) – 23^rd (17 races, 1 DNQ)

Sarah Fisher (Dallara Honda) – 26^th (7 races)

Ana Beatriz (Dallara-Honda) – 30^th (5 races)

2011

Danica Patrick (Dallara-Honda) – 10^th (16 races)

Simona de Silvestro (Dallara-Honda) – 20^th (14 races)

Ana Beatriz (Dallara-Honda) – 21^st (15 races)

Pippa Mann (Dallara-Honda) – 38^th (3 races)

2012

Simona de Silvestro (Dallara-Lotus) – 24^th (14 races)

Katherine Legge (Dallara-Lotus/Chevrolet) – 26^th (9 races)

Ana Beatriz (Dallara-Chevrolet) – 29^th ( 2 races)

2013

Simona de Silvestro (Dallara-Chevrolet) – 13^th (19 races)

Ana Beatriz (Dallara-Honda) – 29^th (7 races)

Pippa Mann (Dallara-Honda) – 31^st (4 races)

Katherine Legge (Dallara-Honda) – 37^th (1 race)

2014

Pippa Mann (Dallara-Honda) – 33^rd (1 race)

2015
Pippa Mann (Dallara-Honda) - 29th (6 races)
Simona de Silvestro (Dallara-Honda) - 30th (3 races)

2016
Pippa Mann (Dallara-Honda) - 29th (2 races)

2017
Pippa Mann (Dallara-Honda) - 30th (1 race)

2018

Danica Patrick (Dallara-Chevrolet) - 38th (1 race)

Pippa Mann (Dallara-Honda) - 41st (1 race, DNQ)

2019

Pippa Mann (Dallara-Chevrolet) - 31st (1 race)

2021

Simona de Silvestro (Dallara-Chevrolet) - 40th (1 race)

2022

Tatiana Calderon (Dallara-Chevrolet) - 29th (7 races)

Simona de Silvestro (Dallara-Chevrolet) - 32nd (4 races)

(Image copyright Ron McQueeney)

Female Drivers in the 12 Hours of Sebring: Part II, 1980-present

Deborah Gregg

In 1999, the stewardship of the 12 Hours of Sebring passed from IMSA to the American Le Mans Series, which currently runs the race. It has also been part of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup since 2010.

Women drivers have continued to enter the race most years, with some success, although there was another serious lull in their numbers in the early 1990s. Liz Halliday is the race's most successful female driver, after her second place in 2007 with Clint and Jon Field. However, Lyn St. James has recorded several class wins and top ten finishes, as well as seven separate entries, which is a female record.

Below is a list of the more recent women's results. As always, the female driver is always mentioned first in the case of a mixed team, for clarity.

1980

Vicki Smith/Klaus Bitterauf/James Moxley (Porsche 911) - 24th

Lyn St. James/Ralph Kent-Cooke (Porsche 935) - DNF

Janis Taylor/Del Russo Taylor/Dave Cavenaugh (Alfa Romeo Alfetta) - DNF

1981

Kathy Rude/Divina Galica (Mazda RX-7) - 31st/DNF

Vicki Smith/Tom Alan Marx/Bob Lee (AMC AMX) - 42nd

Elizabeth Kleinschmidt/Charles Kleinschmidt/Alan Levenson (Chevrolet Corvette) - 70th (withdrawn)

Janis Taylor/Pat Godard/Carol Cone (Alfa Romeo Alfetta) - DNF

1982

Vicki Smith/Klaus Bitterauf/Scott Flanders (Porsche 911) - 22nd

Desiré Wilson/Janet Guthrie/Bonnie Henn (Ferrari 512 BB/LM) - 26th/DNF

1983

Lyn St. James/Reggie Smith/Drake Olsen (Nimrod NRA-C2) - 5th

Deborah Gregg/Kathy Rude/Bonnie Henn (Porsche 924 Carrera) - 35th

Carmen Lista/David Marks/Roy Newsome/Bobby Diehl (Chevrolet Camaro) - 47th

Janis Taylor/Alan Crouch/Cameron Worth (Ford Pinto) - 55th

Patty Moise/Tom Nehl/Nelson Silcox (Chevrolet Camaro) - 60th/DNF

Vicki Smith/Klaus Bitterauf/Scott Flanders (Porsche 911) - 68th/DNF

1984

Deborah Gregg/Jim Trueman/Alfredo Mena (Porsche 924 Carrera) - 63rd/DNF

Vicki Smith/Klaus Bitterauf/Arvid Albanese (Porsche 911) - 65th/DNF

1985

Patty Moise/Les Delano/Andy Petery (Pontiac Firebird) - 9th

1986

Patty Moise/Les Delano/Jeremy Nightingale (Chevrolet Camaro) - 12th

1987

Linda Ludemann/Scott Schubot/Lance Jones (Tiga GT285) - 15th

Lyn St. James/Tom Gloy (Ford Mustang) - 31st

1988

Lyn St. James/Deborah Gregg (Mercury Merkur XR4Ti) - 8th

Linda Ludemann/Scott Schubot/Jim Miller (Spice SE88P) - 51st/DNF

1989

Linda Ludemann/Scott Schubot/Tom Blackaller (Spice SE88P) - 25th

1990

Lyn St. James/Calvin Fish/Robby Gordon (Mercury Cougar XR-7) - 6th, class win

Linda Ludemann/Scott Schubot (Spice SE88P) - did not start, fire in qualifying

1993

Bernadette Hubbard/Ludwig Heimrath, Jr./Ken McKinnon/Tom Rathbun (Porsche 944) - 42nd/DNF

1994

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Renato Mastropietro (Porsche 911 Carrera RSR) - 9th

Linda Pobst/Kat Teasdale/Leigh O'Brien (Chevrolet Camaro) - 42nd

1996

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Ulli Richter (Porsche 911 Carrera RSR) - 47th

1997

Claudia Hürtgen/Michel Ligonnet/Zak Brown/Dirk Layer (Porsche 911 GT2) - 10th

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Ulli Richter (Porsche 964) - 14th

1998

Lyn St. James/Jeret Schroeder/Tom Volk (Kudzu DL-4) - 17th

Giovanna Amati/Craig Carter/Andy Petery (BMW M3) - 32nd

1999

Melanie Snow/Martin Snow/Patrick Huisman (Porsche 911 GT2 Evo) - 9th, class win

Claudia Hürtgen/Hubert Haupt/Zak Brown (Porsche 911 GT2) - 39th

2000

Claudia Hürtgen/Hubert Haupt/Vic Rice (Porsche 911 GT2) - 31st

2001

Claudia Hürtgen/Mel Hawkins/Steve Knight (Lola B2K/40) - 30th, class win

2002

Milka Duno/Scott Maxwell/John Graham (Panoz LMP07) - 45th

2003

Melanie Paterson/Jason Workman/Ben Devlin (Lola B2K/40) - 47th

2004

Milka Duno/Justin Wilson/Phil Andrews (Lola B2K/10) - 22nd

Amanda Stretton/Christopher Stockton/Gareth Evans (TVR Tuscan)  -24th

2005

Liz Halliday/Clint Field/Gareth Ridpath (Lola B2K/40) - 33rd

2006

Liz Halliday/Clint Field/Jon Field (Lola B05/40) - 2nd, class win

2007

Liz Halliday/Darren Turner/Antonio Garcia (Aston Martin DBR9) - 11th

Andrea Robertson/David Robertson/Arie Luyendyk, Jr. (Panoz Esperante GTLM) - 34th

2008

Andrea Robertson/David Robertson/David Murry (Ford GT-R) - 24th

2009

Andrea Robertson/David Robertson/David Murry (Ford GT-R Mk.7) - 14th

2010

Andrea Robertson/David Robertson/David Murry (Ford GT-R Mk.7) - 22nd

2011

Andrea Robertson/David Robertson/Boris Said (Doran Ford GT) - 26th


2012
Keiko Ihara/Jean-Denis Deletraz/Frederic Fatien (Lola B12/80 Coupe) - DNF

2014
Katherine Legge/Andy Meyrick/Gabby Chaves (DeltaWing DWC13) - DNF
Christina Nielsen/Henrique Cisneros/Kuba Giermaziak (Porsche 911 GT America) - DNF

2015
Christina Nielsen/James Davison/Brandon Davis (Aston-Martin V12 Vantage) - 16th
Katherine Legge/Andy Meyrick/Memo Rojas (DeltaWing DWC13) - DNF

2016
Keiko Ihara/Ben Devlin/Joel Miller/Tom Long (Mazda Prototype) - 8th
Katherine Legge/Andy Meyrick/Sean Rayhall (DeltaWing DWC13) - 21st
Christina Nielsen/Alessandro Balzan/Jeff Segal (Ferrari 458 Italia) - 22nd
Ashley Freiberg/Jens Klingmann/Bret Curtis (BMW M6 GT3) - 23rd

2017
Christina Nielsen/Alessandro Balzan/Matteo Cressoni (Ferrari 488) - 17th
Katherine Legge/Andy Lally/Mark Wilkins (Acura NSX) - 30th

2018
Christina Nielsen/Patrick Long/Robert Renauer/Mathieu Jaminet (Porsche 911 GT3 R) - 22nd
Katherine Legge/Alvaro Parente/Trent Hindman (Acura NSX GT3) - 24th

2019
Katherine Legge/Bia Figueiredo/Christina Nielsen (Acura NSX GT3) - 26th

2021

Katherine Legge/Bia Figueiredo/Christina Nielsen (Porsche 911GT3R) - 22nd

2022

Ashton Harrison/Kyle Marcelli/Tom Long (Acura NSX) 27th

Katherine Legge/Rob Ferriol/Stefan Wilson (Porsche 911) - 33rd

2023

Rahel Frey/Michelle Gatting/Sarah Bovy (Lamborghini Huracan) - 35th

Katherine Legge/Sheena Monk/Marc Miller (Acura NSX) 36th

Ashton Harrison/Danny Formal/Kyle Marcelli (Acura NSX) - DNF

2024

Katherine Legge/Sheena Monk/Tatiana Calderon (Acura NSX) - DNF

Rahel Frey/Michelle Gatting/Sarah Bovy (Lamborghini Huracan) - DNF

Lilou Wadoux/Nicklas Nielsen/Luis Perez Companc (Oreca-Gibson LMP2) - DNF

2025

Rahel Frey/Michelle Gatting/Sarah Bovy (Porsche 911) - 40th

Tatiana Calderon/Joey Hand/Till Bechtolsheimer (For Mustang) - 42nd

Sheena Monk/Stevan McAleer/Mike Skeen (Ferrari 296) - DNF

Lilou Wadoux/Simon Mann/Alessandro Pier Giudi (Ferrari 296) - DNF

2026

Lilou Wadoux/Simon Mann/Antonio Fuoco (Ferrari 296) - 32nd (GTD class win)

Sheena Monk/Felipe Fraga/Jenson Altzmann (Ford Mustang) - DNF

(Image from www.f1rejects.com)

Female Drivers in the Daytona 24 Hours

Tomiko Yoshikawa at Daytona in 1993, when she raced with Desiré Wilson

The Daytona 24-Hour sportscar race is the traditional curtain-opener on the international motor racing scene, held in the last week of January, or the first week of February, each year. Only two races, in 1972 and 1974, have been cancelled or shortened.

It was first run in 1966, after four successful, shorter international sportscar races in the early season. Originally, it was part of the World Sportscar Championship, but this ceased in 1982. Between then and 1992, it was run by IMSA, then the Grand-Am Road Racing Series. It is currently sponsored by Rolex.
Women racers have taken part in most editions, in varying numbers, although sadly, fewer in the past few years. In the past, many notable women have entered, including Lyn St. James, the woman with the most starts, Smokey Drolet, Kathy Rude and Lilian Bryner. Milka Duno scored the best result in 2007 - second - and Lilian Bryner had a string of consistent top-five finishes in the 1990s. Usually, these entries were part of mixed teams, although all-female crews took part in 1966, 1967, 1977 and 1994.

Below is a list of all women drivers who have taken part, by year. In the case of a mixed team, the woman's name always comes first, for clarity.

1966

Rosemary Smith/Smokey Drolet (Sunbeam Alpine) - 30th

Janet Guthrie/Donna Mae Mims/Suzy Dietrich (Sunbeam Alpine) - 32nd

1967

Anita Taylor/Janet Guthrie/Smokey Drolet (Ford Mustang) - 20th

Donna Mae Mims/Suzy Dietrich (ASA 411) - not classified

1969

Smokey Drolet/John Tremblay/Vince Gimondo/John Belperche (Chevrolet Corvette C2) - 16th, class win

1970

Smokey Drolet/Norbert Mastandrea/Rajah Rodgers (Chevrolet Camaro) - 25th

Donna Mae Mims/Jim Corwin/Fred Pipen (Chevrolet Camaro Z) - DNF

1972

No race

1974

No race

1977

Christine Beckers/Lella Lombardi (Inaltera Ford) - 47th/DNF

1978

Janet Guthrie/Hugh Kleinpeter/Jef Stevens (De Tomaso Pantera) - qualified, but did not start

1980

Anny-Charlotte Verney/Skeeter McKitterick/Bob Garretson (Porsche 935) - 9th

Lyn St. James/Mark Welch/Tom Winters (Mazda RX-7) - 17th

Kathy Rude/Tom Nehl/Peter Kirill (Chevrolet Camaro) - 25th

Christine Beckers/Kenper Miller/Dave Cowart (BMW M1) - 47th

1981

Kathy Rude/Philippe Martin/Lee Mueller (Mazda RX-7) - 7th

Gail Engle/Philip Keirn/Bard Boand (Chevrolet Corvette) - 36th

Vicki Smith/ Sam Miller/Bob Lee (AMC AMX) - 56th

1982

Kathy Rude/Lee Mueller/Allan Moffat (Mazda RX-7) - 6th (class win)

Vicki Smith/Klaus Bitterauf/Scott Flanders (Porsche 911) - 25th

Desiré Wilson/Marty Hinze/Preston Henn (Porsche 935 K3) - 45th

1983

Kathy Rude/Bonnie Henn/Deborah Gregg (Porsche 924 Carrera) - 13th

Vicki Smith/Klaus Bitterauf/Scott Flanders (Porsche 911) - 35th

Lyn St. James/John Graham/Drake Olson (Nimrod NRA/C2) - 44th

1984

Margie Smith-Haas/Paul Gilgan/John Zouzelka (Porsche 911 Carrera) - 27th

Vicki Smith/Carlos Ramirez/Jack Miller (Nimrod NRA/C2) - 49th

Deborah Gregg/Jim Trueman/Alfredo Mena (Porsche 924 Carrera GTR) - 69th

1985

Robin McCall/Gary Baker/Joe Ruttman (Chevrolet Corvette) - 39th
Lyn St. James/Tim Coconis/Eric Lang (Argo JM16) - 68th

1986

Deborah Gregg/Mike Brockman/Steve Durst/Jim Trueman (Tiga GT285) - 47th 

1987

Lyn St. James/Scott Pruett/Bill Elliot/Tom Gloy (Ford Mustang) - 7th, class win

Deborah Gregg/Scott Pruett/Scott Goodyear/Bobby Akin (Ford Mustang) - 9th

Linda Ludemann/Scott Schubot/Jim Brown (Tiga GT285) - 16th

1988

Linda Ludemann/Scott Schubot/Jim Brown (Spice SE88P) - 43rd

Lyn St. James/Deborah Gregg/Mark Martin/Pete Halsmer (Mercury Capri) - 44th

1989

Linda Ludemann/Scott Schubot/John Williams (Spice SE88P) - 26th

Lyn St. James/David Loring/Marty Roth (Ford Mustang Probe) - qualified but did not start

1990

Lyn St. James/Robby Gordon/Calvin Fish (Mercury Cougar XR-7) - 5th, class win

Linda Ludemann/Scott Schubot/Tomas Lopez (Spice SE88P) - 17th

1993

Tomiko Yoshikawa/Desiré Wilson/Ron Fellows/Pieter L. Baljet (Ford Mustang) - 47th

1994

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Renato Mastropietro/Ruggero Grassi (Porsche 911 Carrera) - 15th

Kat Teasdale/Leigh Miller/John Graham (Porsche 968) - 17th

Tammy Jo Kirk/David Murry/Angelo Cilli/Anthony Lazzaro (Porsche 911) - 34th

Linda Pobst/Kat Teasdale/Margy Eatwell/Tami Rai Busby/Leigh O’Brien (Chevrolet Camaro) - 47th

1995

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Renato Mastropietro/Ulli Richter (Porsche 911 Carrera) - 5th, class win

Margie Smith-Haas/Craig T. Nelson/Ross Bentley/Dan Clark (Spice SE90) - 62nd

1996

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Renato Mastropietro/Ulli Richter (Porsche 911 Carrera RSR) - 4th, class win

1997

Claudia Hürtgen/Ralf Kelleners/Patrice Goueslard/André Ahrlé (Porsche 911 GT2) - 4th, class win

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Renato Mastropietro/Ulli Richter (Porsche 964) - 22nd

1998

Lyn St. James/Jeret Schroeder/Pete Halsmer/Tom Volk (Kudzu DL-4) - 25th

1999

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Renato Mastropietro/Carl Rosenblad (Ferrari 333 SP) - 4th

Claudia Hürtgen/Stéphane Ortelli/Enrico Bertaggia/Robert Nearn (Porsche 911 GT2) - 25th

2000

Allison Duncan/Christian Vann/Stephen Watson/Raffaele Sanguiolo (Dodge Viper GTS-R) - 6th

Claudia Hürtgen/Hubert Haupt/Hisashi Wada/Robert Nearn/Nigel Smith/Stephen Earle (Porsche 911 GT2) - 55th

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Angelo Zadra/Marco Zadra/Carl Rosenblad (Ferrari 333 SP) - 64th

2001

Kim Hiskey/Hugh Plumb/Michael Culver (Porsche 996 GT3) - 10th

Milka Duno/David Gooding/Raffaele Sanguiolo/Stefano Zonca (Dodge Viper GTS-R) - 31st

Claudia Hürtgen/Robert Orcutt/Jürgen Lorenz/Heinrich Langfermann (Porsche 996 GT3) - 42nd

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Ulli Richter/Jürgen Alzen (Porsche 996 GT3-R) - 52nd

2002

Kim Hiskey/Randy Pobst/Steven Ivankovich/Spencer Pumpelly (Porsche 996 GT3) - 73rd

2004

Mae van Wijk/Tracy Krohn/Ron Forristall/Andres van der Dys/Armando Trentini (Porsche 993 GT3 Cup) - 31st

Milka Duno/Robby Gordon/Doug Goad/Stéphane Grégoire (Crawford DP03) - 35th

2005

Maria de Villota/Luca Drudi/Luis Monzon/Gabrio Rosa (Ferrari 360 Modena) - 24th

Milka Duno/Dario Franchitti/Marino Franchitti/Dan Wheldon (Crawford DP03) - 33rd

Mae van Wijk/Dave Gaylord/David Murry/Rod Emory (Porsche 996 GT3 Cup) - 39th

2006

Milka Duno/Dario Franchitti/Marino Franchitti/Kevin McGarrity(Riley Mk XI) - 8th

Danica Patrick/Jan Lammers/Rusty Wallace/Allan McNish (Crawford DP03) - 50th

2007

Milka Duno/Patrick Carpentier/Darren Manning/Ryan Dalziel (Riley Mk XI) - 2nd

Katherine Legge/George Robinson/Paul Dallenbach/Wally Dallenbach Jr (Riley Mk XI) - 25th

2009

Danica Patrick/Andy Wallace/Casey Mears/Rob Finlay (Crawford DP08) - 8th

2013
Melanie Snow/Madison Snow/Sascha Maassen/Marco Seefried/Klaus Bachler (Porsche GT3 Cup) - 19th

2014
Katherine Legge/Andy Meyrick/Gabby Chaves/Alexander Rossi (DeltaWing) - DNF

2015
Christina Nielsen/Christoffer Nygaard/Brandon Davis/James Davison (Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3) - 29th
Katherine Legge/Andy Meyrick/Gabby Chaves/Memo Rojas (DeltaWing) - DNF

2016
Christina Nielsen/Alessandro Balzan/Jeff Segal/Robert Renauer (Ferrari 458 GT3) - 20th
Sabine Schmitz/Klaus Abbelen/Patrick Huisman/Frank Stippler/Sven Muller (Porsche 911 GT3R) - 27th
Ashley Freiberg/Bret Curtis/Jens Klingmann/Marco Wittman (BMW M6) - 48th
Katherine Legge/Andy Meyrick/Sean Rayhall/Andreas Wirth (Panoz DeltaWing) - DNF

2017
Katherine Legge/Andy Lally/Graham Rahal/Mark Wilkins (Acura NSX GT3) - 29th
Christina Nielsen/Alessandro Balzan/Sam Bird/Matteo Cressoni (Ferrari 488 GT3) - DNF

2018
Katherine Legge/AJ Allmendinger/Alvaro Parente/Trent Hindman (Acura NSX GT3) - 22nd
Christina Nielsen/Patrick Long/Robert Renauer/Mathieu Jaminet (Porsche 911 GT3 R) - 41st

2019
Simona de Silvestro/Katherine Legge/Bia Figueiredo/Christina Nielsen (Acura NSX GT3) - 32nd

2020

Tatiana Calderon/Katherine Legge/Rahel Frey/Christina Nielsen (Lamborghini Huracan) - DNF

2021

Katherine Legge/Christina Nielsen/Earl Bamber/Rob Ferriol (Porsche 911 GT3) - 32nd

2022

Katherine Legge/Rob Ferriol/Stefan Wilson/Nick Boulle (Porsche 911) - 37th

2023

Katherine Legge/Sheena Monk/Marc Miller/Mario Farnbacher (Acura NSX) - 22nd

Rahel Frey/Sarah Bovy/Michelle Gatting/Doriane Pin (Lamborghini Huracan) - 46th

2024

Rahel Frey/Sarah Bovy/Michelle Gatting/Doriane Pin (Lamborghini Huracan) - 25th

Ashton Harrison/Graham Doyle/Danny Formal/Kyle Marcelli (Lamborghini Huracan) - 42nd

Tatiana Calderon/Katherine Legge/Sheena Monk/Stevan McAleer (Acura NSX) - DNF

Lilou Wadoux/Matthieu Vaxiviere/Nicklas Nielsen/Luis Perez Companc (Oreca-Gibson LMP2) - DNF

2025

Rahel Frey/Sarah Bovy/Michelle Gatting/Karen Gaillard (Porsche 911) - 33rd

Lilou Wadoux/Kei Cozzolino/Simon Mann/Alessandro Pier Giudi (Ferrari 296) - DNF

Tatiana Calderon/Joey Hand/Harry Tincknell/Till Bechtolsheimer (Ford Mustang) - DNF

Sheena Monk/Stevan McAleer/James Calado/Mike Skeen (Ferrari 296) - DNF

2026

Lilou Wadoux/Simon Mann/Antonio Fuoco/Tommaso Mosca (Ferrari 296) - 32nd

Sheena Monk/Romain Grosjean/Felipe Fraga/Jenson Altzmann (Ford Mustang) - DNF

(Image source unknown)

Lyn St. James

One of the USA's most recognised speedqueens, Lyn St James was born in 1947. She took part in her first races in 1972, at the age of twenty-five. Although she is best known for her exploits at the Indianapolis 500, it was sportscar racing she initially gravitated towards. Single-seaters came much later, after considerable success in closed-wheel competition. She was a regular in IMSA events for the entirety of the 1980s and proved herself a capable driver, with a series of class wins in big races. She also finished in the top ten on numerous occasions, driving as part of a team or on her own.

Her first IMSA entry was the Sebring 12 Hours in 1977, although her team went out before she got to drive. The following season, driving for the same Autodyne team in a Corvette, she was 17th, with Luis Sereix and Phil Currin. She also drove in an IMSA race at Daytona, but did not finish. She repeated her 17th place at Sebring in 1979, driving a Ferrari 365 GTB/4 with Bonnie Henn and Janet Guthrie. At the Paul Revere Daytona event, she and John Carusso took the Autodyne Corvette to eighth, fourth GTO.

In 1980, she was 17th yet again, but at the Daytona 24 Hours with a different team. She, Mark Welch and Tom Winters drove a Trinity Racing Mazda RX-7. Lyn’s results were not always brilliant; later in the season, at Sebring, she and Ralph Kent-Cooke could only limp home to 49th in a Porsche 935. She changed teams yet again for the 1983 season, competing for Nimrod Racing in their Aston Martin. She was 44th at Daytona and did not start at Miami, but was fifth at Sebring, with Drake Olson and Reggie Smith. An accident put her out at Road Atlanta. She transferred to a Mercury Capri for the Daytona finale, but could only manage 37th.

In 1984, she drove an Argo JM16 Ford. After a couple of non-starts, she and Jim Trueman were twelfth at Road Atlanta and 39th at Charlotte. Driving solo, Lyn was tenth at Laguna Seca and Sears Point, and did not finish at Road America. With Herm Johnson, she was eighth at Watkins Glen. With yet another co-driver, Howdy Holmes, she was a lowly 21st at Michigan, but a career-best third at the second Watkins Glen event. Back with Trueman, she steered the somewhat unreliable Argo to seventh.

Still with the Argo, she had a poor start to 1985. During the Daytona 24 Hours, the car's gearbox went after only 54 laps. She and Eric Lang were 28th at Miami, and she was 25th at Road Atlanta with Brent O’Neill. A switch to a Roush-run Mustang was more profitable; she and Bruce Jenner were ninth at Riverside, 17th at Charlotte, and third at Mid-Ohio. A solo Lyn was 16th at Laguna Seca and 30th at Portland, but fifth at Sears Point and ninth at Watkins Glen. With Bill Elliot, she was fourth at Watkins Glen. Driving a Mustang Probe at Sears Point, she only managed 17th. A high point of this season was her class win in the Roush car with John Jones. They were eleventh at Road America. They repeated the class win, with a ninth overall, at the Daytona finale. Another high point was her lone-driver second place at Columbus.

The 1986 season began at Miami, with Lyn back in a Mustang Probe, this time for Zakspeed, with Pete Halsmer. They were eighth. The same duo were 15th at Road Atlanta, and a faltering 42nd at Riverside. Paired with Tom Gloy in the same car, Lyn was fifth at Portland, although Sears Point only gave them a 16th, and the finale a disappointing 33rd. Driving with Bobby Rahal, she was 27th and not classified at Columbus.

Back in the Roush team for 1987’s Daytona 24 Hours, Lyn, along with Tom Gloy, Bill Elliot and Scott Pruett, was seventh, and first in the GTO class. The rest of the season was steady rather than stellar. She drove alone for the greater proportion of it. Her best finish was sixth at Summit Point. She was also seventh at West Palm Beach, and came eighth four times. Her team attempts, including Sebring, were less successful.

1988 saw a much-reduced IMSA programme for Lyn, who was still with the Roush operation. At Daytona, she retired late on. Her team-mates were Mark Martin, Deborah Gregg and Pete Halsmer, and the car was a Lincoln-Mercury Capri. At Sebring, Lyn and Deborah did much better, finishing eighth and second in class. The car this time was a Mercury Merkur XR4Ti, a Ford-based GT car. These were her only outings of the year.

1989 started poorly. After an accident to the Tom Milner Ford Mustand Probe, Lyn was unable to start at the Daytona 24 Hours. This was her only entry into an IMSA event that season.

1990 was a much shortened season too, but it led to a far better result. Lyn, Robby Gordon and Calvin Fish were fifth and first in the GTO class in their Roush Lincoln Mercury Cougar XR7, from a lowly 25th on the grid. Later, at Sebring, the same driver trio were sixth, and won their class once more, again from a long way down the grid. The same year, Lyn, driving solo, scored five top-ten finishes in Trans-Am.

She also raced in Europe on occasion, and entered the Le Mans 24 Hours twice. The first time was in 1989, in a Spice SE89C Ford, which lasted fifteen hours before breaking down. Her team-mates were Ray Bellm and Gordon Spice. The second time was as part of an all-girl team with Cathy Muller and Desiré Wilson, in an updated Spice SE90C Ford. She did not fare any better this time as the team crashed out early on.

For 1992 Lyn took her considerable racing experience to the ovals of her homeland. She took to single-seaters fairly easily, and passed her Indy rookie test straight away. She also qualified her Lola Chevrolet first time round at the fabled Brickyard. From a lowly 27th on the grid, Lyn made her way up to eleventh overall at the end of the race. This single battling performance netted her the Indy Rookie of the Year award. She remains its only female recipient.

Switching cars for the to a Lola Ford for the 1993 race, Lyn qualified again, in 21st. She retired with gearbox trouble. The 500 had not been her only race that year; she had entered six Indycar rounds and finished three. She was thirteenth at Phoenix, seventeenth at Long Beach and twentieth at Portland. She retired at Cleveland and Michigan and did not qualify for one race in Detroit.

1994 was a limited year in many ways, with Lyn only making a "guest appearance" at the Indy 500, after failing to secure more seat time. However, she certainly made her mark in her one race, qualifying a career-best sixth, the highest-ever for a female driver at the time and a good grid position for a relatively inexperienced oval driver. The race itself did not live up to its early promise, and she was nineteenth at the end of it. It was a similar story at the next Indy 500, where Lyn broke the womens' closed-circuit record in qualifying (at 225.722 mph), but crashed out of the race proper at the first corner.

In both 1995 and 1996 she managed to compete in some other races too. She was 20th at Milwaukee, and retired at Michigan, in 1995. As well as the 1996 Indy 500, where she dropped out while in fourteenth position, she drove at Phoenix and Orlando. The Orlando race gave her her best finish of her career - eighth.

By 1998, the best part of Lyn's career had probably passed. She returned to Indy and gave a reasonable early performance in the race, but retired whilst running in thirteenth. By now, she was more involved in motorsport promotion and administration than in actual racing. She was pivotal in setting up the ambitious but short-lived Womens' Global GT Series which ran alongside the American Le Mans series, and founded her own scholarship fund for female drivers, the Kara Hendrick scholarship. Kara Hendrick had been a promising karter who died in an accident.

She did not qualify for the 500 in 1998 or 1999, but scraped on to the grid for the 2000 race. This time she had the distinction of being the oldest driver ever to take part, at fifty-three. The 2000 Indy was also so far unique in that two women started the race that year - Lyn and Sarah Fisher. Lyn's participation came to an end on lap 69 when she crashed her G-Force Aurora. This heralded the end of her professional driving career and effectively handed the reins to Fisher as the "First Lady" of Indianapolis.

Lyn continues to work tirelessly to promote female participation in motorsport and has become an outspoken ally of women racers everywhere. She still races historics on occasion at events like the Goodwood Revival, where she drove a Galaxie 500 touring car with Desiré Wilson.

Although Lyn was not the first, nor the most successful woman in Indy racing, she was definitely the best-known for a long time and has used her profile to do a great deal of good.

She was one of the judges for the initial driver selections of the W Series in 2019.

(Image from www.caranddriver.com)

Cathy Muller

Cathy in 1985

France's Cathy Muller had a promising start to her racing career. She competed, mainly in single-seaters, between the ages of twelve and 33, and showed that she had the talent to go far.

Her first victory came in the European Karting Championships in 1979. She remained in karting for a further year before switching to cars in 1981, when she raced first a Renault 5 and then a Volant Elf single-seater. After a learning year, she carried on the Renault connection and drove in French Formula Renault. She scored her first win at Le Castellet that season, as well as four podium positions.

Cathy continued to progress up the motorsport ladder rapidly. Moving up to Formula 3 with David Price Racing and Ecurie Elf, she jumped straight into the European championship. Her best result was a fourth place, at Le Chatre, and she also achieved seventh places at Magny-Cours and Zeltweg. She attempted to qualify for the Monaco Grand Prix support race, but could not make it. In November she was eleventh in the Macau Grand Prix race, one of only a handful of women to have ever taken part.

By 1984, she was challenging for wins in Euro F3. Driving first for the Scuderia dei Longobardi team, then MC Racing, she finished the season tenth. Her season had begun well, with a seventh at Donington, and she qualified for the Monaco race this time, finishing in eighth place. Her best championship finish was another fourth, at Knutstorp, but she was comfortably in sixth or seventh for most of her races. Her best finish of the year was due to a guest appearance in the French championship, at Albi, where she won.

She also had her first taste of major sportscar racing, driving a BMW-powered Gebhart JC843 at Sandown Park in Australia. Her team-mates were Margie Smith-Haas and Sue Ransom.

At that time, the British F3 championship was the place to be for aspiring stars, so she decamped to England for a year to drive for David Price Racing in 1985. Although she did not achieve any top-three places, she was still ninth overall. Among her results, which are hard to find, she was seventh at Zolder, ninth at Spa and did not finish at Zandvoort. A trip to the Monaco F3 race ended in another DNF.

Feeling she had learned enough from F3, Cathy climbed the next rung in 1986 and moved into Formula 3000, the last step before Formula One. However, the swift hike in budgetary requirements hit her hard. She could only muster the funds for a part-season with three different teams, with no testing. In her first race at Spa, she came 17th. She was also 17th at Mugello and Le Mans, retired at Imola and failed to qualify for the other four races she entered.

Perhaps disheartened by her experiences, she went back to Formula 3 the following year. Back with MC Motorsport in the French championship, she started her season with a tenth at Nogaro. It took her a while to get back up to her usual pace, having missed out on a lot of racing in 1986, but towards the end of the season, she was back in the top five. Her best finish was fourth, at the Le Mans Bugatti circuit, and she was fifth twice, at Nogaro and Lédenon. 

Cathy also entered one race in Germany, and drove a Porsche 962C in a round of the World Sports Prototype Championship at the Nürburgring 1000km. She, Bernard de Dryver and Jurgen Lassig were seventh.

She had another stab at F3000 in 1988, resulting in a DNQ at Jerez. It was time for a different challenge now, so she went to America and drove in single-seaters there for two seasons, as well as competing once more in French F3. She entered nine Indy Lights races between 1989 and 1990 and four of these ended in top-ten finishes. The best of these were two fifth places at Meadowlands and Toronto in 1990.

This led to a drive at Le Mans in 1991. She shared a Spice Ford with Desiré Wilson and Lyn St James, but the team crashed out early on. She also tried ice-racing, in the Andros Trophy.

After a season's break, Cathy entered the Peugeot 905 Spider Cup in 1993. This was a popular one-make sportscar series in France. In her first season she was fifth, but in her second, she was the runner-up, winning three times.

Remaining with sportscars, Cathy took part in the Ferrari Challenge in 1995 and continued her winning streak. She finished the season in second. It was on this high that she decided to retire from racing and start a family.

Motorsport was not forgotten completely: in 1998, she tested a Ferrari for her old team, to still whether she could still handle it as a mother. It turned out that she could, but after over 20 years, Cathy did not wish to race any more. She was now content managing her own team, and acting as her brother Yvan Muller's manager.

In 2010, she made a partial return, taking on two guest races in the SEAT Leon Supercopa, at Magny-Cours. She was fourteenth and fifteenth. In 2011, she also ran in two rounds of the Andros Electric Trophy, at the Pau event. She was eighth in one race, and did not finish the other.

She is now involved in motorsport management once more, for a WTCC team. She is also a member of the FIA's Women in Motorsport Commission, working as a talent scout.