America’s two biggest motorsport series are now at odds, thanks to a social media sensation switching sides. In July, NASCAR parted ways with Hailie Deegan, its only female racer, following a string of poor race results. However, her departure didn’t just mean losing a driver—it also signaled a hit to NASCAR’s fan base. After struggling with declining viewership between 2015 and 2018, NASCAR’s ratings have since plateaued.

With 2 million Instagram followers and being ranked the top female athlete in sponsorship value in 2021, Deegan’s exit is indeed a blow. Now, she’s found a fresh start in IndyCar, bringing her massive fanbase along and giving NASCAR’s rival series a key advantage.

Hailie Deegan brings eyes to IndyCar

NASCAR signed a $7.7 billion media deal with partners like Warner Brothers, Amazon, FOX Sports, and NBC, but 2024 viewership hasn’t met expectations. The Daytona 500 saw a 27% drop in ratings, while the Advent Health 400 faced a 2% dip due to rain delays. While FOX’s numbers have improved over 2023 but remain lower than the 2021 and 2022 totals, NASCAR also took a hit when Hailie Deegan left the Xfinity Series for IndyCar, taking her huge followers with her and further impacting viewership.

In a recent interview with Kenny Wallace, Hailie Deegan reflected on 2020 when she joined the Craftsman Truck Series. “When I started out…NASCAR had the same amount of followers as I did.”

Deegan outranked other female athletes like Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams in 2021. She added the value that she added to the sport: “In my first year of Trucks, I asked around for the TV analytics; I was curious… NASCAR’s views were at a big decline; I don’t know if it’s back up or not. But I was looking at the TV ratings, and from the moment I got into the Truck Series, it was up 20%, and it stayed like that. That’s valuable for me selling sponsors.”

Then Hailie Deegan broached the IndyCar side of things. The open-wheel racing series intends to use her vast popularity bank with its own inputs. She said, “I saw an article a week or two ago about them allotting a lot more of their budget throughout the year to the marketing side of things to help that – which I thought was super cool especially with me coming into it…And like okay, cool, they’re gonna be pushing the marketing side of things harder from their side and then also with the following that I have.” She also shed a brighter light on IndyCar than on NASCAR. “What’s nice for me though after talking to a lot of the marketing people on the IndyCar side, is they’re very welcoming. They want to work with me, they want to help.”

As Hailie Deegan observed, IndyCar’s depth of sponsorship is indeed in a good place this year.

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NASCAR’s recent decline in popularity pertains to several aspects of the sport. For instance, it continues to be popular only within American borders. 99% of the broadcast revenue comes from the US and Canada. A 70-time Cup race-winning team, Stewart-Haas Racing, will shutter at the end of 2024. It lost an army of sponsors in 2023. These dire signs emerge even as sponsorships help turn IndyCar more vibrant. 5-Hour Energy became a full-season associate sponsor for Pietro Fittipaldi’s No. 30 Dallara/Honda in the Rahal Letterman Lanigan team. Before, the energy-drink giant had spent nearly a decade in NASCAR, sponsoring teams and events.

IndyCar driver Graham Rahal said about the sport, “It is the motorsport that you can get the best bang for your buck in the world right now. There is still a lot of intrigue and a lot of interest to be a part of it.” 6-time champion and Chip Ganassi headliner Scott Dixon also added, “I think it’s good. The health of the series, I think, is probably the best I’ve seen it in quite some time. I think when you look at car count, the teams, the amount of sponsors, and the depth of the sponsors is something to be very proud of.” He said about his team, “I think we’re kind of at the point now where we couldn’t really take any more entries. That’s a good position to be in.”

Evidently, Hailie Deegan has entered IndyCar at a good time. Let us see if a good learning experience complements this successful sponsorship nexus.