“Glad You…Got Away From NASCAR”- Racing Community Backs Hailie Deegan’s IndyCar Switch Days After Surprise Announcement

“We’re working on stuff,” Hailie Deegan declared shortly before announcing her career shift. The motorsports athlete suffered a blow from NASCAR this year. Her Xfinity team abruptly cut ties with her after she piled up miserable finishes across a 17-race stretch, with her best being 12th at Talladega. However, flaws within her own team arose. AM Racing’s other drivers fared no better, and its relatively new stature led people to doubt the quality of cars they offered Deegan to drive.

However, now Hailie Deegan is washing her hands off of the stock car racing altogether. She will use her racing prowess in NASCAR’s rival series. She will wheel the No. 38 Ford of HMD Motorsports in Indy NXT, the premier developmental category for the IndyCar Series. And her open-wheel racing venture is enthralling fans who are glad that she turned over a new leaf.

Hailie Deegan is undertaking new pursuits

The daughter of Brian Deegan, a 16-time X Games medalist in motocross and rallying, holds an impressive resume. For instance, she clinched three championships between 2013 and 2016 in the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series and also three wins in NASCAR’s K&N Pro Series. However, her NASCAR national series ventures did not go well. But after spending a drab four-year streak in Trucks and Xfinity, Deegan is done with NASCAR. She had been dabbling in her off-road roots in NitroCross and now will venture into IndyCar.

Deegan recently appeared in the Side-by-Side class of Nitrocross at Utah Motorsports Campus, where she finished 4th. But a future move to Nitrocross’ premier Group E class is definitely not on the cards. The reason? Her sights are set on IndyCar NXT. Now the 23-year-old speedster will make her open-wheel debut on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course during the annual Chris Griffis Test on October 18. Hailie Deegan will join championship front-runner Caio Collet, HMD newcomer Bryce Aron, Josh Pierson, and Tommy Smith among the confirmed HMD drivers for 2025. She recently posted on Instagram: “Track walk before my first test in the @indynxt car at @indianapolismotorspeedway tomorrow”

To aid in her transition, former HMD Motorsports engineer Nathan Toney, the owner of Toney Driver Development, has been working with Deegan. She will contest all 14 rounds in the team’s No. 38 entry. Hailie Deegan is pumped for this new chapter. “I have much to learn, but I am ready to go. The team brings a wealth of knowledge for me to pull from, and I look forward to soaking up as much of that as possible before my race debut next March in St. Petersburg.” She added, “I am excited about the opportunity and look forward to working with a proven program in HMD Motorsports.”

And the racing community is also excited about her IndyCar NXT pursuits.

NASCAR community sides with the outcast

When Hailie Deegan’s stats began to fall, she earned a lot of haters who doubted her ability to drive altogether. But her supporters’ faction was equally strong. Xfinity veteran Kenny Wallace claimed she fell prey to gender disparity in NASCAR. Deegan’s fanbase sanctions her move away from the hot-headed wrecking mentality of NASCAR drivers. One fan commented cheerfully: “So glad you got this ride and got away from nascar. Looking forward to seeing you at Barbers Motorsports Park next spring. HD38!!!!“ Another fan manifested Deegan’s successful fight with her new competitors: “go get em 38.” Somebody else poured forth a potful of luck her way: “GL on the new chapter, Hailie“

Although her miserable streak has been the talk of the town recently, Hailie Deegan’s success history is jaw-dropping. She almost beat Tony Stewart by finishing runner-up at the Knoxville Camping World SRX race in 2021. So some people cannot hold their patience to watch Deegan marvel in IndyCar. “Going to sign up for peacock premium to see if I can watch the practice tomorrow that’s the only way I read that I could do it so I’m going to sign up right now.” Another fan expects to see Deegan slicing her way to the Indy 500 soon: “Hell ya!!! Can’t wait to see her in the 500 in a few years!!“

Evidently, everybody is happy to see Hailie Deegan move on from her NASCAR struggle. Let us wait and see how well she fares in her IndyCar pursuits.