Danica Patrick to divorce husband after seven years of marriage

Danica Patrick’s seven-year marriage to physical therapist Paul Hospenthal will end in divorce.

Patrick announced on her Facebook page Tuesday afternoon she was going through an “amicable” split with Hospenthal, who she met while rehabbing an injury.

“This isn’t easy for either of us, but mutually it has come to this,” she said. “He has been an important person and friend in my life and that’s how we will remain moving forward.”

The couple has no children.

Hospenthal has preferred to stay out of the spotlight during Patrick’s racing career, but the two lived together in Arizona. He was there throughout Patrick’s rise to national stardom in the IndyCar Series and for her transition to NASCAR on a full-time basis this year.

She recently completed a season in the Nationwide Series – where she was named the most popular driver – and will drive a rookie campaign in the Sprint Cup Series for Stewart-Haas Racing in 2013. Patrick holds the record for the highest ever finishing position by a female NASCAR driver.