It seems like the NASCAR Silly Season is well and truly underway. According to the latest rumors, AM Racing is expected to field a second Xfinity Series car for the 2025 season and give Hailie Deegan’s replacement, Lawless Alan, a full-time seat in the team. Harrison Burton, who won the 2024 Coke Zero Sugar 400 for Wood Brothers Racing, has already been confirmed for Tim Self’s team and he will be behind the wheel of their flagship Ford Mustang for the entire 33-race schedule.

If the gossip turns out to be true, will AM Racing be making a wise choice by giving Lawless Alan a full-time opportunity, despite the 24-year-old competing only twice in the Xfinity Series? With Dylan Lupton representing the team in the final six races of the season, what might be the reason for not choosing him instead? While the speculation is rife, it also leaves plenty of unanswered questions for NASCAR fans.

AM Racing experiencing a period of transition

It’s fair to say that Hailie Deegan hasn’t had the career she hoped for with AM Racing. The 23-year-old racing driver’s participation in NASCAR’s second tier was met with plenty of fanfare, because of her immense popularity amongst motorsports enthusiasts. However, her performances didn’t live up to the expectations, as Deegan failed to finish higher than 12th in the opening 17 races for the team. While her results in the Truck Series weren’t particularly impressive either, eight top-30 finishes in the Xfinity Series were simply not good enough for a team that is aiming to become title contenders, forcing a premature end to a promising partnership.

Eventually, Lawless Alan took over the seat and secured a 13th-place result at the 2024 Focused Health 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. If rumors about his full-time role are true, it would be a surprising decision from the team, given his limited experience in NASCAR’s second tier, having made only two appearances. The California native has made his name in the Truck Series but hasn’t secured a victory despite completing two full seasons for Niece Motorsports.

As for Harrison Burton, the Wood Brothers Racing driver will return to the Xfinity Series after a three-year stint at NASCAR’s highest level. The 24-year-old recently won the penultimate race of the regular season at Daytona International Speedway, securing his team’s landmark 100th victory. However, except for the performance at the Coke Zero Sugar 400, Burton’s results have fallen below expectations, prompting the team to replace him with Josh Berry for 2025. If Jeff Burton’s son performs better than Hailie Deegan did at AM Racing, there’s no reason for him to not find his way into the Cup Series once again in the coming years.

AM Racing has forged a technical alliance with the newly structured Haas Factory team, with Stewart-Haas Racing ceasing operations at the end of 2024. This means that Harrison Burton will be feeling confident about his new team’s technical capabilities and competitiveness on the track, while he looks to rediscover his love for racing and make a powerful impact in the Xfinity Series by making use of the resources at his disposal. As for Hailie Deegan, her career is taking a dramatic twist as she is venturing into the world of open-wheel racing.

Hailie Deegan shifts to Indy NXT for the 2025 season

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Despite being just 23 years old, Hailie Deegan is proving her versatility across various motorsports disciplines. She started her career on dirt tracks, transitioned to stock car racing in the NASCAR Truck and Xfinity Series, and will now move on to open-wheel racing in the Indy NXT. The California native has signed a contract with HMD Motorsports and will be behind the wheel of the No. 38 entry for the full 14-race calendar.

Speaking about her next career chapter, Deegan said, “I am excited about the opportunity and look forward to working with a proven program in HMD Motorsports. 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.”

By joining HMD Motorsports, Hailie Deegan will be part of a five-member team that will include Josh Pierson, Bryce Aron, Caio Collet, and Tommy Smith. Despite not having prior experience in open-wheel racing, she hopes to acclimatize quickly and will begin testing at Indianapolis Motor Speedway alongside Nathan Toney, the owner of Toney Driver Development. Her first experience in the racing discipline will come sooner than expected, as Deegan will be competing in the Formula Regional Americas season at the Circuit of the Americas later this month.