Days After Strong Criticism From Fans, Hailie Deegan Finds Optimism in Misery after “Funk” Last Season

What makes a person truly the best in their field of expertise? Is it luck, is it the unique skill set they possess, or is it the relentless hard work? Well, all these are necessary ingredients of success in an elite sport, but the one that sets the best apart from the rest is the capability to rise from the ashes, face adversity and challenge it.

Looking at the Truck Series driver Hailie Deegan, we see something similar. Deegan was disappointed with her performance last year, coming up short on several occasions and being hard on herself made things even worse for the driver.

Despite rather average performance at the Bristol Motor Speedway, where she finished 13th, the #13 Ford driver seems to be optimistic about the future.

Hailie Deegan reveals her thoughts about the disappointing last season

Despite receiving major backlash from the NASCAR community for her awful performances in the last season, Hailie Deegan is intent on turning things around this season. With an awesome 6th-position finish at the Texas Motor Speedway, she is as positive as ever.

Speaking to reporter Noah Lewis, Deegan shared her thoughts on the bad times of her career. The #13 driver talked about how it feels to hit the rock bottom, saying, “Yeah,  I feel like it’s one of those things that … nobody really sees.

“Like, they see on the outside the bad days, but they don’t see what it’s really like. They don’t see the going home and just being down on yourself, feeling like you’re just kind of going through the motion of things, but not really excited about them, because you can’t get anything really good out of it.”  

WATCH THIS STORY: “Only sport that celebrates mediocrity” – Hailie Deegan’s much-needed performance at Texas torn to shreds by unimpressed NASCAR fans. 

Amidst a lot of harsh criticism, she elaborated how a bad season affected her and how things are pacing as of now. “So, like I feel like I was such in like a funk last year with that, but now, I feel like we’re really turning things around. And in this year, we’re improving a lot, like that race where we finished 6th.

“My boyfriend was like hug me and was like it’s a big moment because we’ve struggled so much and we’ve had so many bad days […] But that was a good day.”

Riddled with controversy and sub-par performances, last season definitely wasn’t the best!

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Ranked 21st with not more than 2 top-10 finishes, 2022 wasn’t her best year as later during the season the driver landed on some rough patches. This year too did not start too well for the Thor Sports Racing driver as she could not even manage a top-30 finish. However, things have been looking better now, despite the controversy at the Circuit of The Americas.

The much-awaited race in COTA proved disastrous for the 21-year-old as she, in an effort to gain a more advantageous position, dive-bombed her fellow driver Kaden Honeycutt, bumping into the side of Honeycutt causing both to spin off the track.

This incident created a lot of uproar and she was trolled on social media. However, leaving all such moments behind, Hailie Deegan looks positive. Coupling her passion for the sport with her positive mindset, she’s certainly going to be a star to watch out for.

READ MORE: “There’s a Reason Why…” – Hailie Deegan Criticizes NASCAR for the Decision That Creates Such a Big Gap Between Newer and Experienced Drivers