Katherine Legge

Before moving to the United States, Legge raced in several developmental open-wheel series in Britain, including Formula Three, Formula Renault, and Formula Ford. In 2000 she was the first woman to achieve a pole in a Zetec race. In 2001 she beat Kimi Räikkönen's lap record at a circuit and earned pole position, and was the first woman to receive the BRDC's Rising Star accolade.

Legge's move to America in 2004 came about after she ran out of finances to continue racing in Europe. She visited the UK offices of Cosworth and refused to leave until she had met company boss Kevin Kalkhoven, who ultimately offered her a drive in the first three rounds of the 2005 Toyota Atlantic Championship with Polestar Motor Racing. She won the series opener at Long Beach in her very first Atlantic start, becoming the first woman to win a developmental open-wheel race in North America. She added wins at Edmonton and San Jose, finishing the season third in the championship with three victories and five podiums. She received the 2005 RACER Magazine Most Promising Road Racer of the Year award.

In November 2005, Legge became the first woman to test a Formula One car since Sarah Fisher in 2002, completing 27 laps at Vallelunga in the Minardi team's final testing session with a best lap time of 1:21.176. She was also the first woman to test an A1 Grand Prix car, driving for A1 Team Great Britain in December 2005.

Following her Atlantic season, Legge drove for PKV Racing in the 2006 Champ Car season. In June 2006 she became the first woman to lead a lap in Champ Car series history, leading twelve laps at Milwaukee. She suffered a violent accident at Road America when the rear wing of her car broke, but walked away unharmed. For 2007 she drove for Dale Coyne Racing, achieving a best result of sixth place on two occasions.

In 2008, Legge moved to the DTM with the Futurecom TME Audi team run by Colin Kolles. For 2009 and 2010 she raced for Abt Sportsline, the 2008 DTM champions, though she used the previous year's car in 2009.

Legge signed with Dragon Racing for the 2012 IndyCar season alongside Sébastien Bourdais. Engine supply complications meant that after Indianapolis the team could only field one car per race; Bourdais drove the road and street courses while Legge handled the ovals. She competed in ten of fifteen races and recorded a best finish of ninth at the MAVTV 500 at Auto Club Speedway, finishing 26th in points.

She entered the 2013 Indianapolis 500 with a joint effort between Schmidt Peterson Motorsports and Team Pelfrey, qualifying 33rd and finishing 26th.

Legge returned to the Indianapolis 500 in 2023, qualifying 30th with a speed of 231.070 mph (371.871 km/h), setting a new qualifying speed record for female drivers and out-qualifying her three full-time Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing teammates. A crash on lap 35 and mechanical problems forced her retirement on lap 41.

For the 2024 Indianapolis 500 she drove for Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing, securing 31st on the grid during Last Chance Qualifying before retiring with an engine failure on lap 23. She returned to the team for the remainder of that season's oval events.

In the 2026 Indianapolis 500, Legge drove the No. 11 Dallara DW12 for A.J. Foyt Racing. A collision with Ryan Hunter-Reay on lap 18 ended her race.

In 2014, Legge signed with the Amlin Aguri team for the inaugural season of the Formula E electric open-wheel series, competing in the first two rounds before being replaced by Salvador Durán.

From 2013, Legge competed in the United SportsCar Championship and subsequently the IMSA SportsCar Championship with the DeltaWing programme. In 2017 she joined Michael Shank Racing to drive an Acura NSX GT3. In the 2019 24 Hours of Daytona she was part of an all-female crew alongside Simona de Silvestro, Christina Nielsen, and Ana Beatriz, the team having placed second in class the previous year.

In July 2020, during pre-race testing at Paul Ricard for the European Le Mans Series, Legge suffered a broken wrist and leg in a crash. She had been part of the all-female Richard Mille Racing team with Sophia Flörsch and Tatiana Calderón.

Legge made her NASCAR Xfinity Series debut in August 2018 at Mid-Ohio with JD Motorsports, driving the No. 15 Chevrolet Camaro, and also raced at Road America and Richmond that season. She returned to the Xfinity Series in 2023 for road-course events with SS-Green Light Racing.

In 2025 she raced in several Xfinity events. At Talladega she became the fourth woman in Xfinity Series history to lead a lap, and the second at Talladega, taking the lead on lap 75. At the 2025 North Carolina Education Lottery 250 at Rockingham she qualified but was bumped under the car-owner points provisional rule before ultimately starting in a replacement entry.

On 3 March 2025, Legge made her NASCAR Cup Series debut at Phoenix Raceway driving the No. 78 Chevrolet for Live Fast Motorsports, becoming the first woman to start a Cup race since Danica Patrick in the 2018 Daytona 500. On 6 July 2025 she scored a top-twenty finish on the Chicago Street Course, the best result for a woman in Cup since Patrick.

During the 2026 season, Legge drove the Live Fast Motorsports No. 78 car at the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day as the Indianapolis 500, making her the first woman to attempt the Indianapolis 500 / Coca-Cola 600 Double, and at age 45 the oldest driver to attempt it.

On 18 April 2024, Legge was inducted into the Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame, the first woman to receive that honour. She is a member of the FIA Women in Motorsport Commission. Her career spans more than two decades across disciplines and continents, marked by a series of firsts for women in North American motorsport.