Open wheel racing in America was already having a great year, with an increase sponsorships, tv ratings and attention brought by the merger between the Indy Racing League and Champ Car.

It just got even better, and not even by a little bit.

Danica Patrick won her first race Saturday at the Indy Japan 300, becoming the first woman ever to win a major auto race. While most people probably didn't see the race (it was shown on ESPN Classic thanks to a day's postponement due to rain) it marks probably the best event for IRL since the glory days of open wheel racing in the 1980s and early 90s.

Now IRL has a solid month to milk this victory before the Indianapolis 500 on May 25 (a race at which Danica has done quite well.)

Critics might place an asterisk next to Danica's win. The race in Japan did not feature any of the drivers from Champ Car, as they are racing this weekend at the Long Beach Grand Prix. (The haste of the IRL/Champ Car merger necessitated the dual races due to contract and scheduling issues.) So in many ways, this was as if Danica's race took place last year, prior to the merger. I'll submit, however, that Danica would have won the Japan 300 anyway, because it was an oval race and the Champ Car drivers have limited experience on ovals.

People will now begin asking whether the IRL can now make a run at NASCAR's dominance in the auto racing field. It's going to be a few years before that becomes an issue, I believe. But NASCAR's certainly thinking about it. Some NASCAR officials met in our offices a few weeks back and I asked one of them their thoughts on the IRL/Champ Car merger. They all said it was a good thing for the auto racing industry in general, and that they were happy it happened. But, they all said that if Danica starts winning races it would change the whole landscape of things.

Racing industry impact aside, think of what this does for Danica's off-the-track career. She was already a darling of Madison Avenue with endorsements from godaddy.com, XM Radio and a host of others. Earlier this year, she appeared in this year's Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition. With her victory, Danica can shed the label of the "Anna Kournikova of auto racing," as her on-track performance now justifies her off-the-track profile.