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With the end of ChampCar, it doesn't look like
Katherine will be joining the other three women on
the 2008 IRL roster. She has taken her racing
efforts into the Audi DTM program. The Briton
has joined members of Audi's touring and sportscar
teams for a comprehensive winter programme,
designed to encourage team 'bonding' over a series
of sporting activities, fitness and health
regimes.
2008
Calendar
2007
Schedule and Results
2006
Schedule
Interview
Interview
with
Dad
Photo
Gallery
Bio
DVD
ChampCar
Contact: Legge,
Katherine
(Broken link)
or E-Mail
See
Katherine's
column
Excuses:
Legge
Potential Hurt by First Lap Incident
Tyre
Gamble Helps Legge Improve to 13th
Type
Gamble for Legge in Mexico
Legge
Enjoys First DP Laps
Legge
to Sample DP at Daytona
Legge
back on track with Sebring test
- 9/30/06
Katherine
Legge Walks Away from Spectacular Crash
Unscathed -
9/24/6
Legge
‘shaky but OK' after huge Road America
smash
-
9/24/6
PKV
Racing Race Day Summary Road
America
-
9/24/6
PKV
Racing's Legge Finishes Ninth at Grand Prix of
Denver
‘Not
happy' Legge drops back in
Denver
Legge
points to ‘positive' session in
Denver
Legge
endures 'difficult day' in San Jose
Legge
endures first retirement in
Toronto
Legge
takes Cleveland top
Ten
Top
ten was
possible
- 6/24/06
Legge
finishes tough Portland weekend in
13th -
6/18/06
Legge
‘still searching' for Portland
speed -
6/17/06
Legge
'disappointed' with sixth
6/6/06
More
history made as Legge leads
Milwaukee -
6/4/06
Penalty
hinders feisty Legge in
Monterrey
Everything
that could, did - Houston
Proving
a point - Long Beach
Legge
will Race in the Champ Car World
Series
Legge
Signs for
2006
Katherine
Legge to test Rocketsports Racing Champ Car in
Sebring
British
woman's wish: Champ Car
ride
Katherine
Legge Shows Progress in First Full Day of Champ Car
Testing
A
Lot to Learn: A better-educated Katherine Legge
could strike fear in the hearts of male
racers - Autoweek
Katherine
Legge Wraps Up Two-Day Sebring
Test
Father-daughter
team
Get
a Legge
up
Katherine
Legge Gets Second Toyota Atlantic
Victory -
womenssportsnet.com
Katherine
Legge Heading to Portland to Regain
Ground - motorsports
Katherine
Legge - Toyota Atlantic (Legge is pronounced "leg")
Team Polestar Racing
Group
Legge
continues to excel with her third Atlantic
win - Mercury News
Look
out, Danica! Woman wins race
- MSNBC
Rookie
driver has Legge up in open wheel
- USA TODAY
Rookie
results for Legge,
Patrick
Talking
her way into
ride
Woman
gets third victory of
season
- MSNBC
A Woman's
Place - Automobile magazine
Related Issue:
Women
Racers
Directory,
Women
in Racing,
Women
Racers,
More
Women in
Racing,
Race
Schedules,
Notable
Women
Contact: Legge,
Katherine
or E-Mail
New
Look at Road America - The Warriors in
Pink
Snippets
Katherine currently stands 16th of 22 drivers
overall. Next race is
November 11 in Autódromo
Hermanos Rodríguez
- Mexico City Mexico
* * *
Katherine gridded 14th of 17 cars at
The Netherlands and
finished 11th on the lead lap. She currently stands
15th of 20 drivers overall.
Next race is October
21in Australia at Gold
Coast - Surfers Paradise
* * *
Katherine gridded 14th of 17 cars at Circuit
Zolder
in Belgium and finished 11th on the lead
lap. She currently stands 15th of 20 drivers
overall. TT
circuit in Assen,
Holland is next on
September
2..
* * *
Katherine is gridded 17th of 17 at Road
America
and finished 15th and stands 15th overall.
Circuit
Zolder
in Belgium is
next.
* * *
Katherine started 16th at the Streets
of San Jose
Grand Prix but went out from contact with the wall
on the 13th lap of a 107 lap race. She is 15th of
20 in the current standings. Next race is Road
America
August 12.
* * *
Katherine started 15th at City Centre Airport -
Edmonton but went out early with mechnical problems
and ended up 16th of 17. Currently 15th in the
standings. The next race is the Streets
of San Jose, July 29th. We'll be there to cover
this one. In our opinion, this race weekend is the
best the West Coast has to offer, with five
different types of racing over the three day
weekend. Champ Car, Atlantic Car, Formula BMW,
Historics and Formula Drift.
* * *
Katherine started 16th of 17 cars and finished
16th in a first lap accident at Exhibition
Place
- Toronto. Next race Jul 22: JAGflo
Speedway
at City Centre Airport - Edmonton
* * *
Katherine started 16th of 17 cars and finished
16th at Exhibition
Place
- Toronto.
* * *
Katherine started 17th of 17 cars and finished
11th at Mont Tremblant.
* * *
Kathrine started and ended today's race in
Cleveland in 15th position going out after 32 laps
with mechanical problems. She did finished before
her teammate Bruno Junqueira, who went out on lap 6
via contact.
* * *
Katherine started 16th of 17 cars and finished
17th at Portland International with mechanical
problems.
* * *
Katherine started 17th of 19 cars and finished
10th at the Long Beach Grand Prix.
* * *
Starting from 13th, Katherine Legge got her new
relationship with Dale Coyne Racing off to a strong
start by finishing in sixth place in the inaugural
Vegas Grand Prix, matching her career-best finish
and setting a new Champ Car record for the best
finish by a female on a road or street course.
* * *
While she hasn't signed with a Champ Car team
for 2007, she jumped at the chance to run in the
Rolex 24 hour at Daytona. Katherine fininshed 25th,
72 laps down, with teammates George Robinson, and
Wally and Paul Dallenbach. She had the honor of
turning the one millionth lap in series history at
11:11am Sunday.
* * *
Legge appears in 18 month Women in the Winner's
Circle 2007 calendar along with 17 other women
throughout the motorsports field. 
* * *
Katherine qualified 16th at Mexico City and
finished 13th. For the season, she ended up 16th in
the standings and 5th of the Rookies. She hasn't
been signed by PKV for the 2007 season yet but the
first race will be April 8, 2007 in Las Vegas.
* * *
Katherine Legge's torrid weekend at Surfers
Paradise came to an early end in Sunday's Lexmark
Indy 300 when lap 42 contact with the concrete wall
in turn one finished her race. She hasn't been able
to finish on the leaders lap since the first race
of the season on the streets of Long Beach. The
final race of the season happens November 12 at the
Autódromo
Hermanos Rodríguez
in Mexico City.
* * *
The RoboPong.com 200
Endurance Go-Kart race saw the Conlin sisters and
teammate Lynsey Tilton finish 16th, one spot behind
Tomas Scheckter (15th)
and ahead of Heather Bloyd (26th), Sarah Fisher
(31st), Katherine Legge (31), Dan Weldom (34), and
Scott Dixon (35).
* * *
Road America - Katherine qualified 8th of 19
drivers at Road American in a new
look, going from red to pink to bring awareness
to Breast Cancer. She ran as high as fifth in the
first lap and 2nd on lap 43 during pit stops, and
her race ended on a major crash on lap 46 (of 51)
going through a corner at 180mph when her back wing
dislodged and she crashed. This was the most
intense open-wheel crash I have witnesed since
Gordon Smiley crashed at Indianpolis in 1982. While
they took here to the on-track hospital in an
ambulance, she walked out a short time later,
smiled and soon gave an interview to Speed Channel.
What for information about the actioning of car
parts and her race gear to raise money for Breast
Cancer research. She is 16th out of 21 in the
over-all standings and 5th out of 9 Rookies.
* * *
At the first qualifying session at Road America,
Katherine sits in the 8th of 17 spots on this 4+
,ile course. There's a second qualifying session on
Saturday, September 23. Currently overall standing
in the series is 14th of 20 overall and 3rd in
rookie points.
* * *
The Montreal race made it through 6 laps before
being red-flagged and then postpooned because of
heavy rains. Katherine, who was the victim of a
rain induced spin that had her on the sidelines
after two laps, will be allowed to restart the race
which is scheduled to begin at 10 am Monday, August
28, 20006.
* * *
Karherine started 15th on the Grid at Denver
with a fastest time of 61.777 seconds (97.088
mpg).and finished the race in 9th. She is 14th for
the year and 3rd in Rookie of the Year points.
* * *
Katherine Legge came through a tiring afternoon
in San Jose with a 12th place finish following a
race that saw her collect a pair of punctures and
get involved in a pair of incidents.
She was put on probation for three races for
initiating contact that knocked Andrew Ranger out
of the race after 80 laps. Next Champ Car race is
August 13 - Streets
of Denver
* * *
British Champ Car World Series rookie starlet
Katherine Legge failed to finish a race for the
first time in her Champ Car career on Sunday in
Toronto after a brush with the last corner wall
resulted in a broken gearbox.
* * *
Kathrine gridded 14th in Cleveland, got to 7th,
spun and dropped back to 13th. She worked her way
back towards the front to finsih 8th. A record of
nine caution flags went up and only 11 cars from a
field of 18 finished.
* * *
Katherine Legge was left ‘disappointed' at
the end of qualifying for the Cleveland Grand Prix,
despite securing her best starting position on a
road course so far this year.
* * *
British Champ Car rookie Katherine Legge
finished Sunday's G.I. Joe's Grand Prix of Portland
in 13th position
* * *
Katherine Legge is the first woman to win an
open-wheel race in America, Legge (25) won her
debut race in the 2005 Toyota Atlantic Championship
series (a feeder series for Champ Car), and
followed that up with two more victories to
conclude the season in third place in drivers'
points. Legge pilots the red-and-white PKV
Racing-sponsored car. Legge aims to move up to
Champ Car within the next two years. But her
ultimate dream? To race in Formula One. See the
January, 2004 issue of Car
and Driver, page 123
* * *
Despite making her oval racing debut at the
city's famous The
Milwaukee Mile, Legge eclipsed more
seasoned rivals by becoming the first female to
lead a lap (12 actually) in Champ Car history,
before taking sixth place on the road to overturn
her previous record placement of eighth, achieved
on her debut at Long Beach in April, despite having
to wrestle with a damaged front wing on the #20
Bell Micro/PKV Racing entry.
Katherine Legge Walks
Away from Spectacular Crash Unscathed
Legge, who qualified a season and career high tying
eighth, got an equally good start picking up three
places by the second lap. One as a result of the
opening lap incident and another when Justin Wilson
was moved back two spots for jumping the start.
However, on the restart following the crash she got
boxed in and lost sixth places dropping to 11th.
Showing her trademark determination, Legge began
the long climb back. She picked up one spot on lap
seven, but fell back to 12th after the first round
of pit stops. Legge fought her way back to 10th by
the second round of stops and when Tracy made an
off-track excursion after losing a battle with
Servia, she was in ninth. Legge was running in
seventh just before the start of the third round of
stops, then moved into second place when she was
able to stay out longer than most of the cars ahead
of her. The extra laps, with a low load of fuel,
gave Legge additional track position so that
following a very quick stop by the Bell Micro - PKV
Racing crew on lap 43 she reemerged in sixth place,
just behind her teammate. Three laps later she was
flying through the air upside down and staring at
the ground.
"I am a bit shaken, but I'm okay...as you can
see," she said. "All my bits are intact, so that
just goes to show how strong Champ cars are. It was
a big impact, but hopefully everything will be fine
for the next race at Surfers Paradise."
Legge went on to say, "I don't think you are
really aware of what is going on when you have a
situation like I had. All of a sudden the car just
sped up and hit the wall. Then I see the ground and
there is dirt coming into the cockpit...and I see
the fence...honestly you are thinking what is going
to happen next. I think I saw parts breaking off
all around me. And I think I saw the engine split
away because the thing I was thinking about the
most was that the car was going to catch fire,
which it did. Then when the engine went away and I
though okay that's good. To be honest I think I had
my eyes closed for lots of it, but it is a bit
scary."
Legge concluded by saying, "The only problem I
am having now is I banged by knee a little bit
against the bulkhead. It is just a bit of bruising
which won't look to attractive in my dress at the
Atlantic's banquet tonight."
Note: Following her crash safety officials
reported that Legge was "awake, alert and had no
complaints." She was held for observation for
approximately half an hour. Upon arrival at the
Champ Car medical unit she was asked if she wanted
anything to which see responded, "Just a cup of
tea."
Legge, a rookie, made her 12th career Champ Car
start and first at Road America although she did
compete there last year in the Atlantic
Championships qualifying third and finishing
second. The native of Guilford, England has earned
four top-10 finishes in her first 11 Champ Car
races placing a season, and career, high sixth at
Milwaukee, eighth in her Champ Car debut at Long
Beach eighth in Cleveland and ninth in Denver. She
has qualified in the top-10 twice in 12 attempts
this year (eighth on the oval in Milwaukee and here
on the Road America road course). The resident of
Indianapolis, Indiana is third in laps completed
and ninth in laps led with 12. Legge is 16th in the
standings with 122 points, 46 points out of 10th.
She is fifth in the Roshrans Rookie of the Year
race.
Legge has established a number of Champ Car
records this season. She is the first female to
start a Champ Car/CART race since Lyn St. James at
Michigan in 1995 and the first female to lead a
Champ Car race (Milwaukee, 12 laps). Her sixth
place finish at Milwaukee set a new Series high for
a female driver (her eighth in Long Beach and
Cleveland give her the three best finishes)
surpassing a ninth place finish by Janet Guthrie at
the 1978 Indianapolis 500. Legge won three races
and finished third last year in her rookie season
in the Atlantic Championship Series. Her victory in
her debut Atlantic event at Long Beach made her the
first woman to win a major open-wheel race in North
America.
Source: www.champcarworldseries.com/News/Article.asp?ID=10934
Legge endures 'difficult
day' in San Jose
Katherine Legge came through a tiring afternoon in
San Jose with a 12th place finish following a race
that saw her collect a pair of punctures and get
involved in a pair of incidents.
The Crash.Net columnist came into Sunday's
97-lap Canary Foundation Grand Prix of San Jose
with a fighting chance of another top ten finish in
her #20 PKV Racing Lola-Ford for although she only
qualified 15th on the 17-car grid, the bumpy and
unforgiving nature of the 1.448-mile San Jose
circuit was guaranteed to claim a few victims.
Unfortunately for Legge she became one of those
victims on no less than two separate occasions,
first seeing a good start go to waste when she
clashed with Andrew Ranger on lap 20 while
disputing 12th place and then losing six laps when
she made contact with the turn six tyre barriers on
lap 36.
Coupled with the single lap she lost as her team
replaced the punctured tyre caused by the clash
with Ranger, Legge was left to complete the second
half of the race seven laps adrift of the leaders
and only able to pick up places as others fell by
the wayside. Fortunately for the Englishwoman, the
arduous San Jose circuit claimed a number of
victims before the day was over, allowing Legge to
complete the list of those running at the finish in
12th position.
Source: web78.f-1.com/news_view~t~Legge-endures--difficult-day--in-SJ-~cid~3~id~134722.htm
Top ten was
possible.
Katherine Legge was left ‘disappointed' at the
end of qualifying for the Cleveland Grand Prix,
despite securing her best starting position on a
road course so far this year.
Legge had been 13th going into final qualifying
but had to settle for 14th place by the end of the
session. Nonetheless, her result came after she
gave her PKV squad a scare when she crashed into
the tyre barriers during morning practice. However,
while she left the team with plenty of repair work
to do, she repaid them with 12th in the warm-up
session.
Improving her provisional time initially by two
tenths, Legge sat fifth in the speed charts with 25
minutes remaining but while she was able to improve
her time by half a second later on, she still
slipped to 14th on the grid.
It was a result she was frustrated with,
particularly as Oriol Servia's fourth place gave
her hope that she would be able to get into the top
ten.
“I was disappointed with qualifying because
the Bell Micro – PKV Racing car is better than
where we qualified,” Legge said. “I think
it was one of those situations where I never got
track position. I would have the first four laps
clear and then, when I should have been running my
fastest laps, I would run into traffic.
“I thought we should easily be in the
top-10 with the car we've got. It is just
disappointing because I didn't get any clear laps
at the end of my runs,” she explained. “I
am also disappointed because the Bell Micro –
PKV Racing crew did a great job getting the car
back together after the misdemeanour earlier today.
The car is a good race car, so I am confident that
we can have a good race tomorrow.”
Legge finishes tough
Portland weekend in 13th
British Champ Car rookie Katherine Legge finished
Sunday's G.I. Joe's Grand Prix of Portland in 13th
position after her PKV Racing team only clicked on
a competitive set-up in the final two thirds of
Sunday's race.
The 25-year old Crash.Net columnist never found
the same comfort zone with her #20 Bell Micro
backed Lola as she did in April's major test
session at the picturesque 1.964-mile Portland road
course and with a practice spin doing her
confidence no favours either she lined up a
disappointed 15th for Sunday's 105-lap race.
It quickly became apparent in the race that
keeping the car on the island was of paramount
importance as all 18 starters successfully
completed the race and Legge did just that, gaining
two positions over the course of the afternoon and
finishing ahead of former Forsythe driver Mario
Dominguez in a respectable 13th position.
?The Bell Micro ? PKV Racing team did a good job
preparing the car for the race,? said Legge, who
still sits second in the Rookie of the Year
standings. ?It was the best it has been all weekend
on the last two sets of tyres. I am a little
disappointed because I felt we were held up by some
other cars that were slower, but overall I think we
had a solid race.
?We stayed in the hunt for the rookie of the
year award, so I feel good about that. I really
want to thank my crew for all the hard work this
weekend. They did a great job in the pits, as
always. It's hard because I know we can do better,
but I also know that I am still learning. I just
have to keep improving each weekend.?
Legge ‘still
searching' for Portland speed.
Crash.Net columnist Katherine Legge continued to
struggle to find the sweet spot with her #20 PKV
Racing Lola in final qualifying at the Portland
International Raceway.
The 25-year old British Champ Car rookie will
start Sunday's G.I. Joe's Grand Prix of Portland
from 15th position after setting a best time of
59.297secs around the scenic 1.964-mile Portland
road course, although at the end of the session she
was in no mood to admire the mountain backdrop.
“The Bell Micro – PKV Racing team is
disappointed,” said Legge, who was more than a
second and a half behind polesitter Bruno
Junqueira. “What makes it more disappointing
is that we had such a good car at the test here in
April. We thought it would be the same this weekend
and it is not. The whole team has worked very hard
this weekend, but we still have a lot of work to
do.
“We are going to have to sit down and
figure out the right direction to go with the
car,” she continued. “The good news is we
have a practice tonight, so we have a chance to
make the changes we need. Then we can come back
stronger in the race tomorrow.”
Legge 'disappointed' with
sixth.
Although not one to set her expectations too high,
Katherine Legge has admitted that, in hindsight,
she is underwhelmed with a record-breaking sixth
place in Milwaukee.
Despite making her oval racing debut at the
city's famous Mile, Legge eclipsed more seasoned
rivals by becoming the first female to lead a lap
in Champ Car history, before taking sixth place on
the road to overturn her previous record placing of
eighth, achieved on debut at Long Beach in April,
despite having to wrestle with a damaged front wing
on the #20 Bell Micro/PKV Racing entry.
The 25-year old Briton gained valuable track
time and experience by running an extraordinary
number of laps during Friday's open test and
Saturday's practice session, and then ran another
50 tours in Sunday's morning warm-up, the most of
any driver, as she focused on a couple of long runs
to get a feel for the car in race conditions. That
track time then paid off as Legge drove like a
ten-year veteran instead of a rookie, conducting a
smart, patient race, resisting the temptation to
challenge Paul Tracy when he used his patented high
line into turn one on opening lap and benefiting
when the ensuing three-car pile-up moved her into
fifth place.
When the second yellow flag came out, the PKV
team decided to go with an alternative fuel
strategy and remained on track, putting Legge into
the race lead for the first time in her Champ Car
career. Not content to just lead the race, however,
the Briton then proceeded to defend her position
against fellow countryman Justin Wilson for the
next dozen laps, before a damaged wing caused her
car to understeer and let Wilson, on newer tyres,
through.
Her position then ranged from second to seventh
as the race continued through its three-stop cycle,
but she managed to get some payback on Wilson as
she passed him to keep from going a lap down,
eventually moving into sixth place on lap 156 when
rookie rival Will Power pitted for the last time.
However, despite setting new marks for the series,
Legge admitted to a sense of anti-climax after the
race.
"I am actually disappointed because we had such
a great car all weekend," she said, "If someone had
said yesterday that I was going to finish sixth, I
would have been happy with that, but now I am not
so sure.
"The car felt really good at the beginning of
the race then, unfortunately, about a quarter of
the way in, something went wrong with the front
wing. From that point on, I was struggling with a
massive push, massive understeer, and, the more I
turned the wheel, the more I would scrub the front
tyres away. I was just holding on, trying not to
hit the wall. Fortunately, the rear was very
secure, which is what you want on an oval, but it
was a big struggle, a tough race.
"Even leading is not really significant. I mean,
it is a nice feeling, but that is my job. We had a
good pit strategy, so we took the lead legitimately
and I was racing with Justin, so I proved that I
could be competitive and run with good speed.
"It is all part of the learning process, and I
made it to the end of the race, so that is good.
The team did a fantastic job - the pit-stops and
strategy were great and I am really proud of
them."
Legge is now eleventh in the standings, with 49
points, but just one point of the rookie series
lead, behind Power.
Source: web78.f-1.com/news_View~t~Legge--disappointed--with-sixth-~cid~3~id~131633.htm
More history made as
Legge leads Milwaukee - 6/4/06
British Champ Car rookie Katherine Legge continued
to re-write the Champ Car history books with a
career best sixth place finish at Milwaukee.
In finishing sixth in what will arguably be the
toughest race of the year for the 25 year-old PKV
Racing driver Legge not only continued to vindicate
her place on the Champ Car grid but also began
proving herself as a potential series
frontrunner.
The Time Warner Cable Road Runner 225 at the
venerable Milwaukee Mile was always going to be one
of the toughest tests of the season for Legge and
she rose to the challenge admirably.
In addition to taking a career best eighth place
on the grid Legge also became the first female
driver to lead a Champ Car race when she stayed out
under the first caution period of the day on lap
29, holding on to top spot for a dozen laps despite
the close attentions of Justin Wilson.
Legge eventually succumbed to her countryman's
advances but continued to hold second place through
the middle of a race shortened to 197 laps in order
to fit in with the series' time-limit. However her
earlier pit strategy meant that another pitstop was
required, leaving her two laps down in sixth place
when the chequered flag fell.
With just ten cars finishing the race Legge not
only easily finished as the best placed rookie but
she also moved into eleventh place in the title
race, one point behind current rookie leader Will
Power and just 20 points out of the top five.
Source: gokatherine.com/readLeggeNews.asp?nid=131534
Penalty hinders feisty
Legge in Monterrey.
British Champ Car rookie Katherine Legge may not be
pleased with a final result of 15th in Sunday's
Tecate Grand Prix of Monterrey but her final result
masked a fighting performance from the 25 year-old
PKV Racing driver.
Following a weekend marred by engine changes,
difficulties with the handling of her PKV Racing
#20 Bell Micro Lola-Ford and a further clash with
her fellow British rookie Dan Clarke in practice,
Sunday's 76-lap race was another roller coaster
ride for Champ Cars only female driver.
From 17th and last on the grid Legge picked up
three places on the opening lap around the twisty
2.104-mile Fundidora Park circuit in Mexico thanks
to brave first turn pass on Nicky Pastorelli and a
collision between CTE-HVM teammates Clarke and
Nelson Philippe.
Safely settled in 13th position Legge latched
onto a large train of cars backed up behind her
similarly troubled PKV teammate Oriol Servia only
to lose all her hard earned ground with a brief
spin in turn five.
Pushed back to 16th Legge persevered with a set
of tyres that were well passed their best and began
turning laps far quicker than the drivers
immediately ahead of her. Briefly promoted to the
top ten during the second round of pit stops Legge
emerged ahead of both Pastorelli, Clarke and Jan
Heylen for the final run to the finish, once again
in 13th position.
While 13th would have placed Legge third in the
six strong rookie class her afternoon wasn't over
yet as race officials handed her a drive through
penalty for some stout defending against her
increasing nemesis Clarke in the closing stages.
Forced to take an extra trip down pit road with
less than ten laps remaining Legge was demoted to
15th where she remained for the rest of the
race.
Despite losing several valuable championship
points thanks to her penalty Legge still runs third
in the Roshfrans Rookie of the Year standings just
12 points behind rookie leader Will Power heading
into the next round of the series at the famous
Milwaukee Mile.
Source: www.katherinelegge.com/readLeggeNews.asp?nid=130710
Everything that could,
did
Katherine Legge was left frustrated after her
second Champ Car outing, having endured a string of
problems throughout the two-hour night event at
Reliant Park in Houston.
Already ruing a less than satisfying second
qualifying session, and having had to have a
precautionary suspension change after brushing the
wall in warm-up, the Briton was faced with having
to battle her way through the field, but was
hampered by three very different obstacles.
"What a day, what a day," she sighed,
"Everything that could have gone wrong, went wrong.
They say bad things happen in threes and they were
certainly right today. First, I had a knee pad get
loose in the cockpit. Then, I had an electrical
problem with the car and finally I got taken out of
the race."
Legge was running 13th, having made up two
places on her grid slot on good PKV strategy
despite the electrical woes, when fellow Briton Dan
Clarke sent the Bell Micro machine into the tyres
with a mistimed lap 42 move. To make matters worse,
the CTE-HVM driver was ten laps down on Legge at
the time of the incident.
The impact with the tyre wall not only cost
Legge time while the safety car extricated and
restarted her, but also confined the PKV car to the
pits for a further twelve laps while her crew set
about replacing the rear wing which had been torn
off. She eventually returned to the race 15 laps
down, and back in 15th place, but made up one spot
before the chequered flag fell.
"I really have to thank the Bell Micro/PKV
Racing crew, as they did a fantastic job getting
the car repaired," Legge admitted, "They are really
a great bunch of guys and I appreciate their hard
work and support.
"Obviously, I am very disappointed because we
had a good car for this race and were moving up the
field. The good thing is that we made a lot of
progress this weekend and I am looking forward to
making even more next weekend in Monterrey."
First Legge: Proving a
point.
It's been a week now since my Champ Car debut, and
I think the Long Beach result has just about sunk
in.
For sure, the part where I made a mistake has
sunk in, but we'll take eighth for our first race.
We had a bad qualifying the day before, so we'll
take that result and the points, and we'll work on
things and move on to the next one.
I love Long Beach, but I am glad to have got it
out of the way. Of course, I won there last year,
and the atmosphere, the sunshine, everything about
it is just great, so I like going back there. I
like the track although, obviously, it's different
to drive in a Champ Car. I think it is going to be
like that this year because, even though I know
some of the tracks, they're going to be different
in the Champ Car. Long Beach is still fun to drive
but, when you're coming out of the hairpin and put
your foot down and have 750bhp and a lot of
wheelspin and there's no rubber on the track, you
think it's definitely different!
The whole weekend feels different going back as
a Champ Car driver. You've got a lot more things to
do, and a lot more demands on your time - and there
was a lot more pressure on me last weekend. There
was a lot of added media attention, and I think, to
some degree, it was a distraction, but you just
have to focus harder on being focused. It was an
experimental weekend in that respect, as we didn't
know exactly what was going to happen, and how
heavy the attention was going to be, but, now that
we do, we can develop strategies to move
forward.
Practice was really all about getting used to
everything and, although practice and first
qualifying didn't really go as planned, again,
looking back, perhaps they weren't so bad. We were
just learning and getting to grips with the set-up
of the car, and Oriol and Jimmy were trying to help
as much as they could with that because they had
driven there before and have driven Champ Cars a
lot more than I have. We just wanted to get through
the first qualifying and practice sessions as it
was going to be faster in second qualifying.
Basically, we drove around, trying to improve
the car, staying out of the wall and we thought
that we had a good shot at the top ten in second
qualifying, but things didn't really go our way. I
made a mistake on new tyres - running with the two
types, the reds and the blacks, was a learning
experience - but, at least, we know we can come
back next time and it will be better.
Because of qualifying, lining up on the grid was
disappointing. I wanted to be further up the grid -
I don't think I've ever been that far back, and it
was a bit humiliating! When you're on the last few
rows, it's not really where you want to be, so I
was disappointed at that. It was great going round
on the back of the truck, and on the parade lap,
when everyone's waving and cheering - that really
gives you a boost - but I thought that we really
had a lot of work to do.
The team did a fantastic job with the strategy
and that got us back into the race, and we were
eighth fastest, so we probably finished where we
should have. It was a long race, kind of what I
expected but, obviously, there were things that I
didn't expect too. I believe that I cost myself
sixth place and a shot at leading the race, but
most of the other rookies made more mistakes than I
did, so we'll take that and move on. I'm glad that
I've got the first one out of the way because it
was weighing on my mind, and I'm really looking
forward to Houston now.
It was disappointing to be the only PKV driver
to make it to the finish, and I really felt for
Jimmy and Oriol. Of course, I went through the
first corner and saw that the others hade gone off,
and my first thought was that it could mean more
points for me. It sounds selfish, but it's
completely honest. Obviously, you want to win by
overtaking those guys and being quicker than them,
but you'll still take the points any which way you
can. If they're silly enough to throw it away,
we'll take it. Unfortunately, the retirements
weren't Oriol or Jimmy's fault, so I felt really
bad for them.
I hope Jimmy does more this year, as it was
great to have him there, and great to have him
racing. Both he and Oriol have been such a great
help to me, developing me and bringing me along. I
don't think that you'll find that in many
team-mates, as racing drivers are selfish and
generally do the bare minimum for anyone else.
Would I do what they have done for someone else?
Honestly, I don't think I would.
The first corner wasn't so bad for me, although,
if I had qualified higher up, who knows. At Long
Beach, you come through a hairpin before going down
the start-finish straight, so the field is always
pretty strung out before it gets to the first
corner. I could see the yellow flags and, at the
back, we were just cruising and taking it easy by
the time we got there. As a team, we half-expected
that something might happen and, when it's a long
race like that, you really don't want to take
yourself out on the first bend. I picked my way
through, then there was a yellow, so we came in for
fuel - we made sure that, every time we could, we
topped up - and managed to drag the people behind
in with us, so we didn't lose track position. After
that, we managed to pick a couple off, but did most
of it under pit-stops really.
Like I said, I reckon we could have finished
sixth, but I spun mid-race. I just made a mistake.
I was on 40-lap old tyres, so they were pretty old,
and I obviously wasn't being careful enough on
them. I had a lot of oversteer coming around that
particular corner and where, normally, you'd give
it a handful of opposite lock and it'd be fine,
this time it snapped out on me and I was fully on
the lock-stops and couldn't rescue it. Maybe it was
a lack of concentration, but I think it was really
just a genuine mistake, albeit one that I won't
make again.
I was sat there and I was kicking myself so
hard! It was soul-destroying, I was desperate!
Obviously, I had spun it, and I was fine with that.
I'd even kept the engine running in the spin, but
then I stalled it, so I was doubly kicking myself
while I was waiting for the rescue team to get to
me! However, I know that I'm going to make these
mistakes. It's if I make them again that I'm going
to be stupid. If I only make them once and learn
from them, then it's a good thing.
Everybody's been fantastic since the race. The
fans were fantastic and I'm so grateful for their
support. That's what makes it fun, what makes it a
great weekend. A street circuit and the fans at a
street circuit make it a completely different
atmosphere. Obviously, I haven't talked to all the
other drivers, but we had a couple of days of
testing in Portland after Long Beach and everyone's
been really supportive. They respect what I am
trying to do and, more importantly, they respect
the fact that I'm just another race car driver and
I'm just trying to do my very best.
I think that the team were also happy to get the
race under their belt, because there was just as
much pressure on them as there was on me. They have
been working so hard towards it, and have had a lot
of extra work because of my lack of experience and
needing to bring me on. It's not like they have got
an experienced driver and can plonk him in the car,
get fantastic feedback and get to be up the front
straight away - they've had to work really hard
with me and I think it was a relief for them to get
this one out of the way as well. I showed promise,
I showed that I can race and I got out of the car
and wasn't tired at all - I could have done another
race. I've worked really hard on all that, and I
think that it showed that we have potential.
Testing showed that too - although I had my
first crash in a Champ Car at Portland. It was
disappointing in that we were P8 on the first day
and then had some gearbox problems, and then we
were P7 on the second day and I went and caught the
tyre barrier. I didn't get a chance to run in
'happy hour', when everyone puts new tyres on and
generally goes quicker. However, overall, it was
promising. Every time we go out, I get closer to
Oriol, closer to the front of the pack, and I
learn. That's all we can wish for.
I know some people say that I have a luxury in
being able to go out there and have a 'learning
year', but I don't care. That's what all the other
rookies are doing as well, I'm just being honest
about it. Yes, I want to win, as much as anybody
else on the grid, but I'm being realistic and want
to get what I can out of it. I want to maximise
what I can this year, and that means learning as
much as I possibly can. Of course, it also means
results, but I'll be happy going in to 2007 having
learned all I need to learn and developed as a
driver.
We tried some really funky stuff at Portland,
some bizarre set-ups. Oriol did the same, as he had
Jimmy's car from Long Beach as well as his own.
They each had their own direction to go in, and we
were coming from another direction, so we learned a
lot, some really beneficial things which, moving
forward, will really help us. Whether they'll help
us for Houston or not, I doubt, because Portland is
a 'proper' track, not a street course, but I think,
when we go back to Portland, we'll be in really
good shape.
The PKV team is doing an awesome job now. Of
course, we're still a relatively new team but, as
long as the engineers and everyone keep working as
hard as they have been, I don't see any reason why,
by the end of the year, we wont be on top of
things.
I've got some time off this week, although I
don't know what normal people call time off, as I'm
still busy 24-7. I suppose, as a race car driver,
you don't get any real time off as I'm still going
to be in the gym twice a day, and I'm still going
to be down at the workshop, learning all I can.
I suppose, for me, time off means not travelling
for a while. I'm in Indy now for seven or eight
days, then we go to Milwaukee for a rookie test,
where Kevin will pick Jimmy and me up to go to
Italy - where we'll have some fun on powerboats for
a while! The life of a racing driver, eh?
After that, I think I'll have a quick stop back
in England, where I'll get to see my mum, my sister
and my boyfriend. Then I'll be back in Indy for a
few more days, getting acclimatised again and
figuring out plans for what we're going to do when
we get to Houston.
I'll speak to you again then.
Legge
to drive in the Champ Car World Series at Long
Beach
Katherine Legge, 25, joins
the IRL Indy Car Series' Danica Patrick, as
the only women racing in major open-wheel series.
She won three times on the developmental Atlantic
Championship Series in 2005, and moved up to Champ
Cars beginning with the season-opener Toyota Grand
Prix of Long Beach. She will drive her first event
for PKV Racing, a team co-owned by series
co-owner Kevin Kalkhoven.
Source: USA Today,
February 15, 2006
"It's all so new to me,"
Legge said. "I have to be more physical to
drive the car, and the whole thing is just a
different beast with pit stops, push-to-pass and
strategy...I just want to be rookie of the year and
improve toward 2007 and see where we are as a
team."
Source: USA Today, April 5,
2006
Legge Signs for
2006
Katherine Legge signed for Polestar for this
season's US-based Toyota Atlantic Championship with
backing from Champ Car team PKV Racing. And she
scored a history-making debut victory in the Series
at Long Beach, California, on 10th April. Well
done, Katherine - details on www.champcarworldseries.com
- a terrific achievement for the 25-year old
ex-Formula Renault racer from Guildford, England.
Katherine's first win was followed up by two more
as the year wore on and she finished Third overall
in the Championship. In October 2005 comes news
that she is to test an F1 Minardi (just before the
team is handed over to Red Bull) at Vallelunga on
November 21-24, just after she has her first taste
of a ChampCar on November 18-19 in the States.
Katherine Legge to
test Rocketsports Racing Champ Car in
Sebring
EAST LANSING, Mich. (December 12, 2005);
Rocketsports Racing will begin testing at
Florida’s Sebring International Raceway
today and following the announcement that they will
be running Richard Lyons during the two-day test
came the announcement that Katherine Legge will
also have the chance to run in one of the
team’s Champ Cars.The 25-year-old Briton
has a bright future ahead of her in the wide world
of auto racing. One of Europe’s
top female race car drivers, Legge was the first
woman to win a pole position in the British Formula
Ford Zetec series in 2000. She competed
in the British Formula Renault and British Formula
3 championships in 2002-2003. She
furthered her racing resume in 2004 by racing for
parts of both the British Formula Renault and North
American Formula Renault series before getting her
break in Atlantics.Turning many heads during an
off-season test for Toyota Atlantic team Polestar
Racing Group, she was given the opportunity to run
in the Champ Car feeder series backed by PKV
Racing. In her first full season of
racing professionally, she took the series by
storm. Earning her first win in her debut
race at Long Beach, Legge became the first woman to
win a major open-wheel race in North
American. She continued a strong run
throughout the season to finish third in the
championship standings with ten top-ten finishes,
eight top-five, five podiums including two
additional wins in Edmonton and San Jose.The
Northampton, England resident enriched her racing
experience most recently by climbing into the
cockpit of a Formula One car testing for Minardi,
followed by a test with A1 Team GBR last weekend at
Dubai Autodrome in Dubai, United Arab
Emirates. Legge became the first female
to test a Formula One car in over a decade and the
first female to step foot in to an A1 Grand Prix
series car.As Rocketsports begins to prepare for
the 2006 Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World
Series Powered by Ford, the team will be running
Richard Lyons during the first day of the test,
with Legge expected to make her first run in a
Champ Car tomorrow on the 1.72-mile permanent road
course in Sebring."
Source: katherinelegge.sexysportschicks.com
Look
out, Danica! Woman wins race
- MSNBC
Legge earns 2nd major open-wheel victory for woman
since 1980
Woman
gets third victory of season
- MSNBC
The only woman driving in Champ Car’s top
developmental series pulled off a difficult pass
for the lead Sunday and went on to win in the
streets of downtown San Jose, her second straight
victory and third of the season.
A
Woman's Place
- Automobile magazine
A few weeks ago I drove from LA to Dallas/Ft Worth
to witness a six-woman shootout for a possible
Menards Infiniti Pro Series ride with Nunn
Motorsports, owned my Kathryn Nunn. Please
emphasize the word "possible".
Katherine
Legge Gets Second Toyota Atlantic
Victory -
womenssportsnet.com
Look out Danica Patrick, Katherine Legge is on your
heels. Legge showed Sunday that her victory in
April at Long Beach in her Toyota Atlantic debut
was no fluke, racing to a win on the new road
course at City Center Airport, near downtown
Edmonton. It is only the second major open-wheel
win for a woman since Desire Wilson won an Aurora
Formula One race at Brands Hatch in Legge's native
England in 1980, the year Legge was born.
Rookie
driver has Legge up in open
wheel
- USA TODAY
While Katherine Legge was preparing to drive in her
first race this season in Long Beach, a couple of
young girls stopped to wish her good luck. They
made her charm bracelets and asked for her
autograph. After Legge crashed during qualifying,
the girls came by to make sure she was OK. On race
day, Legge gave the girls something to celebrate: a
victory. Legge's win in the Toyota Atlantic series,
the feeder system for the Champ Car World Series,
marked the first time a woman has won an open-wheel
race in North America. Desire Wilson won at Brands
Hatch in England in 1980, the year Legge was born.
"It was so cool to see those young girls after I
won," says Legge, of England. "Hopefully, people
like me can open doors for young girls like them. I
didn't actually think I could be a racing driver
when I was growing up because I'm a girl."
Father-daughter team
Legge and her family have financed much of her
racing career. She has been a driving instructor to
help pay the bills. It all started when her father,
Derek, a former competitive soccer player, bought
her a go-kart for her ninth birthday. "I got the
go-kart, and I was quicker than my father," she
says. From then on, racing became a father-daughter
endeavor. Derek, who makes a living building homes
in England, has been to all but one race this
season. He missed Edmonton. "To think that it all
started when I was 9 and he spent all of his
hard-earned money on my go-karts and then he missed
that win," Legge says. "He was crying on the phone,
and I told him he had to stop because he was making
me cry."
Legge's mother, Vivienne, however, never really
shared in their enthusiasm. Vivienne, who sells
homes in England, didn't like the dusty atmosphere
of the racetrack. "She's been very supportive, but
I don't think this is what she expected her
daughter to do," Legge says.
Talking
her way into ride
Legge has planned to take her first practice spin
in a Champ Car at an undetermined location sometime
after the season. For someone who didn't even think
she'd have a ride this season at any level, Legge
is glad to have options.
She unsuccessfully made a bid to race in the IRL
during the last offseason. Then she heard that
Kalkhoven was going to be in England meeting with
engine executives and she showed up in the
company's waiting room for him. She persuaded him
to give her a test ride; soon afterward he decided
to help sponsor her.
Rookie results for Legge,
Patrick
A comparison of Katherine Legge and Danica
Patrick's rookie seasons in the Toyota Atlantic
series.What a difference of six-years racing
experience means.
|
Katherine Legge (2005) was
25
|
Danica Patrick (2003) was
19
|
|
Race
|
Start
|
Finish
|
Rank
|
Race
|
Start
|
Finish
|
Rank
|
|
Long Beach
|
7
|
1
|
1
|
Long Beach
|
5
|
3
|
3
|
|
Monterey
|
8
|
5
|
2
|
Long Beach
|
10
|
14
|
7
|
|
Portland 1
|
7
|
9
|
4
|
Milwaukee
|
7
|
6
|
7
|
|
Portland 2
|
10
|
3
|
4
|
Laguna Seca
|
9
|
13
|
9
|
|
Cleveland 1
|
5
|
16
|
8
|
Portland
|
10
|
6
|
8
|
|
Cleveland 2
|
4
|
5
|
5
|
Cleveland
|
10
|
5
|
7
|
|
Toronto
|
6
|
6 | | 
