Hailie Deegan, best known for her exploits in stock car racing and NASCAR, took her first crack at open-wheel competition in the Indy NXT season opener on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida, on Sunday. The result? A 14th-place finish, which, depending on your expectations, was either a respectable start or a sign that she has a long road ahead racing cars that have no fenders.
Deegan, now driving for HMD Motorsports, made the jump to Indy NXT after a turbulent NASCAR career that never quite delivered on its early promise. Her debut in open-wheel racing was met with curiosity and skepticism in equal measure. Could a driver bred in the world of fender-banging stock cars adapt to the delicate precision of single-seaters? Sunday’s race didn’t provide a definitive answer, but it did offer a glimpse of what’s to come.
The weekend didn’t start well. Deegan struggled in practice, lingering near the bottom of the timing sheets. Qualifying was similarly unremarkable, leaving her to start from the back of the grid. But if there’s one thing she’s known for, it’s persistence, and she carried that same determination into the race.
The race was scheduled for 45-laps, but several crashes forced the event to become a timed affair, which in the end only shortened it by one lap. Despite the 4 cautions that left several cars destroyed, Deegan was able keep her car clean—an achievement in itself given the usual chaos of St. Pete’s tight, unforgiving layout. While she wasn’t carving through the field like some Hollywood script, she did manage to gain a few spots thanks to on-track passes and attrition. Most importantly, she finished on the lead lap, a small but crucial victory in a debut where the primary goal was survival.
The race was scheduled for 45-laps, but several crashes forced the event to become a timed affair, which in the end only shortened it by one lap.
Ahead of the race, Deegan admitted she was taking a conservative approach. “I think my goal is to get through this one. Have a clean, easy day for this race and then really start going from there,” she said. And in that regard, mission accomplished.
HMD Motorsports, one of the top teams in Indy NXT, provides Deegan with a competitive car, but it’s now up to her to extract speed from it. The transition from stock cars to open-wheel machines is no small feat—these cars require a completely different driving style, with higher cornering speeds, precise braking, and an aversion to anything resembling contact. And there is no power steering, adding another physical challenge to drivers used to stock cars.
Deegan’s next test will come at Barber Motorsports Park on May 4, giving her two months to review data, refine her technique, and perhaps find a bit more pace. The road ahead won’t be easy, but if nothing else, her debut showed she’s willing to fight for it.
Whether she can evolve into a genuine contender in open-wheel racing remains to be seen. For now, she’s taken her first steps into a world that rewards precision over aggression, and patience over brute force. One thing’s for sure: it’ll be fascinating to watch what happens next.
I have been around and written about the sport of NASCAR for over three decades and previously worked fulltime for the Sporting News and Scripps-Howard News Service. I am also a contributor to two Chicken Soup for the Soul books including the NASCAR edition, published in 2010 and the author of “The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers’ Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing.” I am a multiple National Motorsports Press Association award winner. Early in life I spent 23 years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community serving in support of Operation Just Cause, Desert Shield/Storm and ended my military career in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
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