Milka Duno

Milka Duno is a Venezuelan former race car driver who brought an unusual combination of brains and speed to American motorsports—four master’s degrees and a history-making career that included victories in sports car racing and groundbreaking runs in IndyCar and NASCAR.

EARLY YEARS

Born on April 22, 1972, in Caracas, Venezuela, Duno was the kid who always brought books on family vacations. Her love for learning was evident early on, and she came by her mental agility honestly—her father was a salesman, and her mother was a lawyer who worked two jobs to support the family while Milka pursued her education. Always bookish, she grew up as a baseball fan in Venezuela, hardly the typical origin story for someone who would eventually tear up American race tracks.

Duno didn’t just dabble in education—she conquered it. She earned four master’s degrees: in Organizational Development, Naval Architecture, Aquaculture, and Maritime Business. And here’s the kicker: she earned the last three simultaneously. With her engineering background, she possessed a natural aptitude for mechanics, which would later prove invaluable when she translated technical knowledge into track performance.

OTHER INTERESTS

Motorsports wasn’t even on Duno’s radar until she was 26 years old. As a recent Porsche owner, a friend invited her to participate in a Porsche Driving School event—and something clicked. “I realized it wasn’t my destiny to be an engineer,” she later said. “It was my destiny to be a race car driver.” Of course, her parents—the lawyer mom and salesman dad—probably had other ideas about what she should do with all those engineering degrees.

Beyond racing, Duno has channeled her energy into inspiring the next generation. She wrote a bilingual children’s book, “Go, Milka, Go!”, which depicted her as an animated character teaching the importance of education. The book won awards and became part of her “Milka Way” educational initiative, through which she visits schools, hospitals, and community centers to motivate children and their parents. She’s appeared at venues like Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas, as part of her “Racing for Kids” program. CNN International featured her in their “Leading Women” series and invited her to participate in their celebration of International Day of the Girl. She even had a cameo in the 2008 film “Speed Racer,” playing a character named Kellie “Gearbox” Kalinkov—a role originally written as a male driver.

EARLY SUCCESS

Duno began racing in Venezuela in 1996, finishing second in the Venezuelan GT Championship in her first year of competition. In 1998, she placed fourth in the Venezuelan Porsche Supercup Championship. By 2000, she had moved to the United States and seized the Panoz GT Series Championship crown. That same year, she won the Ferrari Challenge and received “Venezuelan Auto Racing Driver of the Year” honors after scoring a top podium finish at Road Atlanta in a Ferrari F-355, becoming the first woman to win that particular achievement.

Her breakthrough in American sports car racing came in 2001 with a four-win season in the American Le Mans Series. She followed that with dominance in the Rolex Sports Car Series, scoring three impressive and historical overall wins—twice at Homestead-Miami Speedway and once at Le Circuit Mont-Tremblant in Canada. These weren’t class wins; these were overall victories against the entire field. At the 2004 Daytona 24 Hours, she came home second in the CITGO Pontiac-Riley, beating her own best finish for a woman at that legendary endurance race. Her team-mates watched as she proved herself not just competitive, but genuinely fast.

NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS

• 1996: Finished second in Venezuelan GT Championship in her first year of racing[1].
• 1998: Placed fourth in Venezuelan Porsche Supercup Championship[2].
• 2000: Won Panoz GT Series Championship and Ferrari Challenge; named Venezuelan Auto Racing Driver of the Year[3].
• 2001: Achieved four wins in American Le Mans Series[4].
• 2003-2005: Scored three overall wins in Rolex Sports Car Series at Homestead-Miami (twice) and Circuit Mont-Tremblant[5].
• 2004: Finished second at 24 Hours of Daytona, the highest finish for a female driver in the race’s history[6].
• 2007: Qualified for Indianapolis 500 with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing[7].
• 2008: Competed full season in IndyCar Series, finishing 25th in points with 140 points[8].
• 2008: Appeared in film “Speed Racer” as driver Kellie “Gearbox” Kalinkov[9].
• 2010: Attempted to qualify for Indianapolis 500 alongside three other female drivers (Danica Patrick, Sarah Fisher, Ana Beatriz, and Simona de Silvestro)[10].
• 2014: Became first Hispanic female driver to compete in NASCAR Nationwide Series with RAB Racing[11].

INSPIRATIONS

Duno has been vocal about her belief that gender shouldn’t matter once the helmet goes on. “When you put the helmet on, it doesn’t matter if you are woman or man,” she said. “The important thing is your ability, your intelligence and your determination.” That philosophy—paired with her engineering mind and competitive fire—has guided her approach to racing in male-dominated spaces. Her parents’ work ethic clearly influenced her: a mother who juggled two jobs while pursuing law, and a father who understood the grind of sales. These weren’t people who made excuses, and neither would their daughter.

REPUTATION

Duno’s reputation in motorsports is complicated. On one hand, she holds the record for highest finish by a female driver in the 24 Hours of Daytona and racked up legitimate overall wins in sports car racing—achievements that speak for themselves. On the other hand, her IndyCar career from 2007 to 2010 was marked by struggles. She never finished higher than 13th in a race, and her slower qualifying times and on-track incidents drew criticism from fellow drivers. The most public incident came at Mid-Ohio when Danica Patrick confronted her in the pits after an on-track incident—complete with towel-throwing and raised voices, though it wasn’t quite the “catfight” some media outlets wanted to portray.

What’s undeniable is that Duno broke barriers. She was the most successful female sportscar racer in history at her peak, and she opened doors as the first Hispanic woman to compete in stock car racing on a national level in the United States. CNN’s “Leading Women” series recognized her influence, and OMEGA featured her in their Ladymatic campaign. Whether you focus on the sports car wins or the IndyCar struggles probably says more about what you value than it does about her actual career.

FUTURE GOALS/PLANS

No information is available about Duno’s racing or professional plans for 2025 and beyond. Her most recent competitive appearances were in the ARCA Racing Series and select NASCAR Nationwide Series races in 2014. Since then, she has focused on her educational initiatives and community work through the Milka Way program.

REFERENCES

[1][2][6][7][11] Milka Duno – Wikipedia
[9][11] About – Milka Duno Official Website
[3] Indy’s Fastest Businesswoman – Hispanic Executive
[4][5] Milka Duno 2 – Women in Racing
[8] Milka Duno – Driver Database
[10] List of female Indianapolis 500 drivers – Wikipedia
Milka Duno Biography – Henry Ford Museum
Female naval engineer turned racecar driver – Star Tribune
Milka Duno Speaking Profile – Premiere Speakers
Quote: Milka Duno, Race Car Driver
Kellie “Gearbox” Kalinkov – Speed Racer Fandom
Go Milka Go! – Official Website
Milka Duno’s Need For Speed – Latin Business Today