Hailie Deegan‘s year began on a high note but plummeted to a dismal level. The lone full-time woman driver in NASCAR jumped from Truck to Xfinity before making a mark first. Deegan’s employers held high hopes for her journey. But when she failed to deliver, AM Racing harshly announced they were snapping ties with the former ARCA winner.

Deegan’s misfortune drew a basket of mixed responses from the NASCAR community. Most people reasoned that her transition from Truck to Xfinity was too fast. Others lost faith in her talents as a racecar driver. However, one Xfinity veteran is still confident about Deegan’s prowess.

Hailie Deegan earns a brownie point for her future

Being the only woman in a male-dominated sport certainly earns you some spotlight. Especially if you are failing to keep up with your peers’ performance. Hailie Deegan left behind three years in the Craftsman Truck Series, not recording any real progress. She just fetched one top-five and size top-ten finishes. Even then, AM Racing, a new team itself, decided to invest in her for Xfinity – probably due to her 13th-place finish in a 2022 Las Vegas race.

However, this year, she could barely scrape the front row – she was 28th in points with no top-five or top-ten finish. After Joey Logano wielded her No. 15 Ford to an 8th-place finish, she lost her job at AM Racing. But now whispers of Deegan returning to a Xfinity ride for 2025 are circulating. People have been hounding her, and Kenny Wallace, the retired Xfinity star, is unhappy. He chided Deegan’s doubters on his YouTube channel: “What is the deal with all of you? Are you jealous of her? Are you mad that they keep giving her rides?” 

Stewart-Haas Racing will disband at the end of this season, and the Haas Factory Team is going to continue in its stead. Under Gene Haas and Joe Custer, the team is planning to rope in a new Xfinity member – and it could be Hailie Deegan. Wallace supported this endeavor, believing in Deegan’s chance. “I think Hailie Deegan’s going to be in second – they’re going to field two Xfinity cars. I think she’s going to get a chance because it’s like everybody – let’s see what they can do in a good car.” Kenny Wallace also offered a unique reason for Deegan’s fall in performance. While Dale Jr blamed the system, he blamed the team: “As far as her not running good in Truck, maybe she was in two vehicles that were not up to par.” 

Wallace then shared snippets from a heart-warming conversation between himself and Hailie Deegan, who praised the veteran for his supportive nature. “Hailie Deegan and myself, we texted back and forth. She said, ‘Thank you for always putting up for me.’ I said, ‘Hailie, here’s why. My mom ran Powder Puffs and my niece raced.’ And I sent her pictures. She said, ‘Well I’ll be darned. Now I know why you put up for us girls.’ I said, ‘That’s right.'”

So the iron women in Wallace’s family motivated him to act as a strong pillar for women like Hailie Deegan. Another motivating factor was Deegan’s history of strong racing.

Deegan’s resume is remarkable

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Before Hailie Deegan ventured into NASCAR, she was indeed a racing phenomenon. She competed in the ARCA Menards Series, racking up three wins in 2018-19. In 2020, she switched from Toyota Racing Development to Ford, which is one reason that Kevin Harvick construed for her drastic fall in performance. Yet in 2020, Deegan won the ARCA Rookie of the Year title, owning 4 top-five and 17 top-ten finishes. Deegan also boasts a decorated off-road racing career – she won championships in the Lucas Oil Off Road Pro series in 2013, 2015, and 2016.

No wonder Joe Custer is willing to give her a second chance. The manager of the Haas Factory Team outlined his vision for the upcoming team: “We’ve got to put cars in the winner’s circle, we’ve got to sort out our equipment because our business model is reliant on having technical partners to keep the program healthy.” Custer believes Deegan’s history somewhat aligns with the team vision, albeit with a slight reservation. “We believe there’s more in her, and we want to be part of that, but that’s for future conversations.”

For now, Hailie Deegan is drawing sympathy from some people like Kenny Wallace. But only time will tell what trajectory her career will take.