She raced full out.
She got into the top three.
She made a run.
She didn’t finish her Indianapolis 500 on Sunday driving in the cockpit of a race car, but riding in the back of an ambulance.
Sarah Fisher still is not The Main Woman.
She didn’t swig the victory milk Sunday afternoon, but indulge Fisher if she selected another beverage.
Talk about being in the pits.
Polesitter Scott Dixon won the Indianapolis 500, and Danica Patrick received much of the attention on and off the track and in the network commercials and the infield, but Fisher had to persevere through circumstances no other driver, man or woman, did leading up to and in Indy. Indiana Jones’ misadventures couldn’t match Fisher’s in Indiana.
She deserves the Mrs. Goodwrench Award.
The 27-year-old Fisher, making her seventh start at Indy:
• Was left without a major sponsor during qualifying month when an energy drink outfit reneged on its agreement.
• Mortgaged her home to raise money to compete at Indianapolis and planned to paint the name of an Indianapolis college on her car when a dot-com company came through to sponsor her last week.
• Sat frustrated in her stalled car as the rest of the field cruised away to follow the pace car, dropping her from the eighth row to dead last.
• Got help from her crew — which includes her husband, her father and a brother-in- law — to start her car and chase the other 32 drivers.
• Quickly moved up the grid and, when many of the other cars pitted during a caution on the seventh lap, drew to third.
• While still under the yellow flag on the 12th lap, swerved, and the car stalled out again and gyrated onto the grass, forcing her crew to restart the engine and causing her to fall two laps behind the early leaders.
• Returned to pit row on lap 36 to refuel and have her tires changed, and a faulty tire gun put her farther behind.
• Sat frustrated again, during the next pit stop, when her car stalled again.
• Climbed to 27th, one lap behind the lead, by the halfway point on the Old Brickyard when race leader Tony Kanaan had to go high on the track at turn 3 and spun sideways in front of her, and she had nowhere to go except into his car, sending her into a sidewall near pit row, and sending her out of the race.
And you think you had a miserable time driving in traffic during the holiday weekend.
“It happens in racing,” said Fisher, who was somewhat right.
She was uninjured — except her pride. Wrecks have driven her out of four Indianapolis 500s. But Fisher won’t be driven out of the sport.
Despite all her troubles and recoveries Sunday, Fisher didn’t receive an nth of the notice of Patrick, last seen stomping down pit row in search of fellow driver Ryan Briscoe. She didn’t think he was such a jolly good fellow. The two have had a row before at a race. As Patrick was easing away from her pit box late in the race, Briscoe pulled out in front of her, and the rear-ender concluded her day.
Patrick — the First Lady of Racing — apparently had some impolite intentions, but the head of security persuaded her to back away — Ryan’s hope.
The Second Lady of Racing, meanwhile, was being accompanied by Kanaan back to trackside in the ambulance, and they shared no ugly feelings or drivers’ licenses.
After all, Fisher has been voted the Indy Racing League’s most popular driver. She has been successful in open-cockpit and NASCAR racing, and in 2001 she was the runner-up in an IRL race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, the highest finish for a woman until you know who won this year in Japan.
This is Danica’s world, and Fisher is turning left in it. She can’t get past Patrick in endorsements and interest and swimsuit photos and sponsors, but she can get by.
There was more awareness about Sunday’s running of the Indy 500 because of the heightened belief that Patrick could win, the unification of the two open-wheel factions and the Helio Factor. Brazilian Helio Castroneves is a two-time Indy winner but is better known for winning last year’s “Dancing With The Stars.”
Dixon, an Auckland Raider, won.
I’ve been to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway a dozen times for 500s, and I’ve watched a race at Charlotte (Lowe’s) Motor Speedway (site of Sunday night’s NASCAR event), but the best race I’ve attended — the Monaco Grand Prix — also was held Sunday. You choose — Monte Carlo, Indianapolis or Charlotte? I prefer races beneath the Prince’s castle to races down the street from the White Castle.
Sarah Fisher should try her luck in Monte Carlo next year.
Woody Paige: 303-954-1095 or wpaige@denverpost.com
