Paul Edward Hospenthal, Danica Patrick’s Ex-Husband: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

Danica Patrick is currently in a relationship with NFL star Aaron Rodgers, but this is not the first time she has been in love. Previously, Patrick was married to her ex-husband, Paul Edward Hospenthal, from 2005 – 2013, before they split, according to USA Today. The divorce was filed in January 2013 and finalized in April 2013. In court documents, the marriage was “irretrievably broken” and reconciliation was not a possibility. Get to know more about Patrick’s marriage and her ex Hospenthal in our 5 Fast Facts below.

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1. Hospenthal Met Patrick When He Was Treating Her for an Injury

Paul Edward Hospenthal is a physical therapist and he was treating Patrick for a non-racing injury when the two met, as reported by USA Today. They then began dating and became engaged in 2004. Hospenthal is 17 years older than Patrick.

Hospenthal also is an avid golf player. In fact, according to Learn More Facts, Hospenthal is a professional golf trainer. Her reportedly has trained starters and professional golfers, along with celebrities, in his career.

While Hospenthal met Patrick on the job, there have been rumors that he’s dated some of his patients in the past. On Celebritter, one commenter named Damon wrote that, “Considering Hospenthal’s ugly past hooking up with girls 20 or younger when they were his patients during his years as a physical therapist, he’s lucky he hasn’t served time in prison, so he’s got nothing to complain about.” Nothing of this nature has been confirmed by Hospenthal and this was the only comment of its kind made against him.

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2. Patrick Was Legally Married to Hospenthal When She Met Boyfriend Aaron Rodgers

Patrick met boyfriend Aaron Rodgers at the ESPY Awards in 2012. At the time, she exchanged email addresses with Rodgers, but she was still legally married to Hospenthal. The two remained friends and both Rodgers and Patrick went on to engage in high-profile relationships. Rodgers dated actress Olivia Munn, while Patrick dated a fellow NASCAR buddy.

Rodgers is an NFL quarterback for the Green Bay Packers and he is a Super Bowl champion. Football runs in his family, as his father, Edward, was an offensive lineman for the Chico State Wildcats. Today, Edward works as a chiropractor. In his successful sports career, Rodgers has amassed an estimated wealth of $30 million, as reported by Celebrity Net Worth.

Rodgers is also known for his public feud with his family, which came to light when his brother, Jordan, became the front-runner and then winner of The Bachelorette with JoJo Fletcher. When Jordan was on the show, Page Six reported that he said, “I have a great relationship with my [older] brother, Luke. Me and Aaron don’t really have much of a relationship.” Rodgers’ ex-girlfriend Olivia Munn spoke out about the feud, saying, “There’s a lot of complications. I don’t think either side of the road is clean, but I do think it’s not OK if you try to stand on someone’s shoulders, then throw dirt in their face, that’s what I think.”

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3. Danica Patrick Announced Her Divorce on Facebook

The announcement of Patrick’s divorce from Hospenthal came one day after the ex-couple’s anniversary. The announcement was made by Patrick on Facebook and it stated, “I am sad to inform my fans that after 7 years, Paul and I have decided to amicably end our marriage. This isn’t easy for either of us, but mutually it has come to this. He has been an important person and friend in my life and that’s how we will remain moving forward.”

After the split, Patrick said that one thing she valued in her relationship with Hospenthal was her ex’s business sense. According to USA Today, Patrick said, “I learned a lot about business from him and am grateful for that.”

Shortly after the split, Patrick went on to tell USA Today Sports that, “I feel like I’ve just reached a point where I’ve stopped overthinking things and stopped trying to be scared of what might happen on the other side. You’re just living your life, and that’s that.”

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4. There Were Rumors Danica Patrick Cheated on Her Husband

After the split, there were rumors of infidelity, as Celebritter reported rumors that Patrick cheated with a younger man, NASCAR’s Ricky Stenhouse. Some commenters on the post had negative things to say about Patrick, as well as the rumors.

Celebritter blogger Marc Anselmo said, “What was it that pushed their marriage to the point of no return? According to reports Danica has quickly formed a friendship with NASCAR rookie Ricky Stenhouse, who is just 24-years-old, in the past year. They are in constant contact as they both work the same job. Stenhouse has been accused of going easy on Danica on the race track several times by fans.”

It probably doesn’t help rumors that Patrick went on to date Stenhouse after her marriage ended with Hospenthal. The relationship lasted for five years, as reported by For the Win. When the exes announced they were dating in early 2013, Patrick released this statement to the Associated Press:

We are dating, and I know there’s been a bit of a runaround this week at the media days and poor Ricky got grilled (with questions). It was out of respect to NASCAR, to all the manufacturers, the new cars, the teams, the sponsors, just to allow the news of the day to be about racing and not let anything interfere with that. So, it’s Friday now, so that’s why we waited until the end of the week to be up front about each other … The couple waited until the end of Charlotte Motor Speedway’s weeklong annual media tour to go public with their relationship, which started as a friendship as they raced each other the last two seasons in the Nationwide Series. Stenhouse became a mentor of sorts to the 30-year-old Patrick, who left IndyCar after the 2011 season to make the full-time switch to NASCAR.

Patrick also said, “I think I am just finally excited to tell someone about this. I have a boyfriend, his name is Richard.”

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5. Danica Patrick Didn’t Want Kids During Her Marriage

According to Patrick, for many years she didn’t want children, but when she was in a relationship with Ricky Stenhouse, she was reconsidering her decision. She even tried to conceive, but had difficulty. According to Rare County, Patrick admitted, “I did IVF treatments, I froze my eggs, hormones, I gained four pounds, and I’m five foot one, so four pounds make a difference. I just decided I needed to try something new.”

Patrick discussed the experience further in a documentary of hers, revealing, “I have always had people say, ‘You’ll make a great mom someday,’” Danica said in the film, “and there’d be days a long, long time ago where I would be thinking in my head, ‘I don’t want to.’ ‘I don’t want kids’ … It’s definitely more of a thought now — and being with Ricky, that is something he has always wanted. If we were going to have a relationship, that had to be something that I wanted. Ricky’s well aware that I’m not having a family unless we’re married in any capacity.”

Who knows? Maybe Patrick will go on to have children with Aaron Rodgers.