Danica Patrick to retire after Daytona 500, Indy 500

35-year-old driver last raced in Indy 500 in 2011

(Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)

Danica Patrick announced Friday that she will retire from full-time racing next year after competing in the Daytona 500 and the Indianapolis 500, according to The Associated Press.

Patrick, 35, is the only woman who has led laps in both of those races. She competed in the Indy 500 from 2005 through 2011, when she moved full time to NASCAR.

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Her highest finish at the Indy 500 was third in 2009. She won her only IndyCar race in 2008 in Japan and while she won the pole for the Daytona 500 in 2013, she finished eighth.

The first woman to compete full time in NASCAR’s highest level, her career-best finish in the Cup Series was sixth at Atlanta in 2014. In 2015 and 2016, she finished the Cup Series season in 24th place, her best overall season finish.

Sunday's Monster Energy NASCAR Cup season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway will be her 251st race at the NASCAR national series level, the most ever for a female driver.

While she has been racing for Stewart-Haas Racing since 2012, she will not be representing the team at the Daytona 500 in February. The team is replacing her with Aric Almirola after Sunday's race.