Was Hailie Deegan really the problem at AM Racing? When people got to know that they were parting ways, they immediately suspected the team was tired of Deegan underperforming. AND let us not forget how they already got Joey Logano to replace her in Chicago. He entered an Xfinity race after a long time and notched a good P8 finish. This convinced people that Deegan was the problem. But it seems that was only half the truth!

Deegan’s former chief crew, Joe Williams, shared something that has raised several questions. What did he say?

Does AM Racing have internal problems to solve?

Deegan took to Facebook to share the latest update. “Beginning this season, I had a lot of excitement and hope in taking my next step in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. It’s something I’ve been working towards for years and always dreamt about. I worked hard to prepare for this season after the team pursued me to drive their car. Unfortunately, it has not turned out the way that I expected.”

“There are always several reasons within a race team as to why things do or do not work, but sadly our goals no longer align. With that being said, myself and AM Racing will be parting ways. The only thing I am focused on is getting back to being competitive. That is ALL that matters to me,” she shared. What followed were about 2.3k comments below the post. As many fans were seen cheering for the driver, a fan, [Robert Boyd’s] wrote, “Hope the crew chief who got fired gets his job back.”

This caught the crew chief’s attention. Joe Williams replied to the fan, “I don’t need my job back. Alot more then driver Crew chief. Wasn’t her fault they made the change. Like the post said goals don’t align.”

Now, here’s the thing. Joe Williams joined AM Racing as a crew chief in the 2022 off-season. He led driver Brett Moffitt to one top-five and ten top-ten finishes in 2023. Yet that is not all of his impressive resume; Williams also earned his first career Xfinity Series crew chief victory at SS GreenLight Racing with driver Cole Custer at Auto Club Speedway in 2022. Hence, when the team paired crew chief Williams with Hailie Deegan, it expected the duo to lead the pack and give similar results for a winless Hailie Deegan.

However, in 2024, the No. 15 team lagged behind tremendously. Deegan was 28th in points, having barely scrapped the front row when the team took the decision. A month ago, Joe Williams had been dejected with revamp efforts, prompting fans to blame Deegan instead.

But the truth was something else, as Williams revealed his emotions in a Facebook post that said otherwise and indicated his rapport with Hailie Deegan instead of the team. “Yes, I am no longer with AM. I want to thank Hailie Deegan for taking a chance on me this year. I wish her the best in the future and value our friendship.”

So, does this mean that there are internal issues at AM Racing? Let us not sideline that though she was still not strong with Williams on the pit box, the driver did a bit better with him as the crew chief than with Matt Lucas.

Deegan’s performance under Williams versus Lucas:

Given the Fords’ lagging performance this year, Williams’ hints at internal issues at AM Racing may not be too far-fetched. But what exactly is amiss? That isn’t known.

Regardless, getting Joey Logano to drive in the No. 15, who is one of the top-performing drivers for Ford, hence his top-ten finish at Chicago is not anything surprising. Also, the Ford team uses a computer program that mimics real-world driving into data that helped Logano gauge the Xfinity race. Now a passionate driver short, AM Racing has already moved on to its next No. 15 face.

AM Racing is moving on from Hailie Deegan

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With zero wins, zero top-10 finishes, no poles, zero laps led, and a total of three DNFs, it was somewhat obvious that AM Racing was going to make a change to salvage the season. When Matt Lucas replaced crew chief Joe Williams, many questioned whether it was the right move. Some fans even called Deegan the “Crew chief killer.”

Despite being the youngest member and the only woman in NASCAR when she joined, the driver still had time to make a significant climb in the standings. However, she remains stuck in 28th place. Now while she must still be wrapping her head around her Xfinity misery, AM Racing is moving fast – having fixed the new driver; Josh Berry for their next few races.

Update on Josh Berry: He is currently driving the No. 4 for Stewart-Haas Racing. As per an announcement on July 3rd, he will be moving to Wood Brothers Racing for the 2025 Cup season.

Berry, holding three prior Xfinity starts in Pocono, also released a statement about his joining. “I am really looking forward to being back in the Xfinity Series. I can’t thank everyone at AM Racing and Viva Tequila Seltzer enough for the opportunity.”

Hence, as Joey Logano and Josh Berry get extra seat time in Xfinity, Hailie Deegan is in misery. Hopefully, the talented road racer will find a seat soon. What do you think?