Hailie Deegan, once billed the next big thing in stock car racing, is detouring to open-wheel competition.
Deegan, 23, is scheduled to drive the full Indy NXT Series schedule next season for HMD Motorsports after four seasons in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck and Xfinity series.
Deegan, who signed on with the Ford Performance Development Program in 2019 with eyes set on a path to NASCAR Cup, is scheduled to drive her first laps in an Indy NXT car in an open test Friday on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
At HMD, she joins drivers Caio Collet, Josh Pierson, Tommy Smith and Bryce Aron.
“I am excited about the opportunity and look forward to working with a proven program in HMD Motorsports,” Deegan said. “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.”
Deegan showed success at lower levels of stock car racing and arrived in the NASCAR national series world full-time in 2021 in the Truck Series. She raced full-time there in 2021, 2022 and 2023 before moving to the Xfinity Series this year.
Despite considerable support from Ford, Deegan found the going rough in NASCAR. In three seasons in trucks, she failed to score a top five and had only five top 10s. She has a top finish of 12th this year (at Talladega Superspeedway) in Xfinity.
“Hailie, and especially the Deegan name, are huge in motorsports, and we welcome them to the HMD Motorsports family,” said team president Mike Maurini. “Hailie has already been in the shop and is taking the move to open-wheel racing seriously.”
Deegan is scheduled to drive HMD’s No. 38 cars.
