Having spent the majority of her racing career inside a stock car, adapting to open-wheel racing was always going to be a challenge for Hailie Deegan. The NASCAR racing scene has had its fair share of twists and turns for the 23-year-old driver. After early success at the K&N Pro Series, followed by three years at the Truck Series level, she made a jump to the Xfinity Series in 2024.

Well, after just 17 races with AM Racing, her rookie run in the tier-2 division of NASCAR was cut short. This wasn’t the dream run that Deegan had hoped from her rookie season in the Xfinity Series. And although there were chatters about her scripting a comeback in NASCAR for 2025, she completely switched lanes to open-wheel racing. She joined HMD Racing and will compete as a full-time entry in the Indy NXT (a developmental series) in 2025.

Ahead of her full-time run next year, Hailie Deegan did get a chance to pilot the open-wheel race car. And it’s fair to say that it will take some time for her to get acquainted with open-wheel racing as she steps out of her comfort zone.

Hailie Deegan had a lot to take during her first test drive

Over the last five years, Deegan was used to being strapped inside of the stock car cockpit. The windshield, the roll cage, and the safety nets certainly made the drivers feel secure in their seats. But the Indy NXT cars by Firestone come with an open cockpit along with a halo for the driver’s protection. Deegan was a part of the 22 drivers lined up for the Chris Griffs Memorial test session at the Indy road course. And she quickly learned about the difference between the two racing series.

“It’s definitely odd. I could tell you that it’s different not having a windshield. That’s something, when you race at Daytona, you don’t think about. On this side of things, you feel like your head’s going to rip off. That’s something that I’m definitely having to get used to. Not having the windshield and being able to really feel everything is unique.” Deegan said after the session.

Another big challenge for Deegan was the endless options and blinking lights she had on her steering wheel. “I was a little overwhelmed at first going out. So, I’m like, ‘OK, pit road button.’ And then there’s these lights flashing at me, warning alarms. And I’m like, ‘I need to bypass those real quick.’ And then looking at the shift light, there’s just a lot going on. I feel after the second session, I figured out what is important, or don’t worry about that, bypass that. So, I’m getting the hang of it,” she added.

However, the test run wasn’t something to rave about, as among the 22 drivers, Deegan ranked last in running the laps. She clocked a time of 1:18.9038, which placed her last in the line-up. It has to be noted that this was her first attempt at running in a competitive set-up in the open-wheel car. But the fans online got on her back and were critical of her first attempt at the Indy level.

Despite the backlash, Hailie Deegan found positives from her experience driving the Indy NXT car and is eager to improve on her initial attempts.

Deegan focused on new learnings and growth with her Indy NXT career switch

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The NASCAR fans have been very critical of Deegan and her performances on the racetrack. Some even accused her of stalling the progress of her team AM Racing in 2024. But a statistical comparison paints a rather different picture of how the #15 team performed after her departure.

Deegan knew that her practice stint would attract a lot of attention along with some negative reactions. But she understands the challenges of shifting to open-wheel and is taking one step at a time and improving her craft. “First time at Indianapolis in general, so it’s definitely a lot to take in at once these cars are very very fun to drive. Very different from what I’m used to. I drove an open-wheel car one other time. So this is definitely a lot to take in.” She said after the practice run.

The HMD Racing team has been a dominant force in the Indy NXT Series. They have three championships to their name along with 26 wins, and Deegan’s plan is to learn from the team’s part success in elevating her output on the track. “That’s the nice side of HMD, there’s a lot of teammates; they have a lot of quality drivers. A lot of data that I have never had access to in the past six years of my life, so there is a lot that you can utilize if you are willing to put in the work and utilize all that.”

Judging a driver’s capability over a single practice session is premature. After all, Deegan has a total of 14 races to display her racing talents in the open-wheel race car. So she does have ample amount of time to get a hang of open-wheel racing and get better at it.