“These Aren’t Slouches” – Hailie Deegan Enthralled by Tony Stewart and 2 Other Iconic Veterans; Reflects on Her NASCAR Career

The idea behind Tony Stewart‘s Superstar Racing Experience was never to compete with NASCAR and threaten its status quo in the arena of stock car racing. It was to promote the vastness and diversity of the sport, by having retired or semi-retired veterans battling it out with full-timer Cup drivers as well as young guns. Needless to say, the young drivers get a lot to learn from the veterans.

ThorSport Racing’s Truck series driver Hailie Deegan had such an educational experience recently after she secured her second top-5 finish of the 2023 SRX Series. After the race, she talked about what she took away from the race at the Berlin Raceway.

Competition brings out the best in Hailie Deegan

The race rolled on for a solid 100 laps that ended with the Kyle Busch swimming down the victory lane. Earning 16 valuable points, Hailie Deegan finished 5th after Brad Keselowski, Ryan Newman, and Marco Andretti. After the race, Frontstretch’s Stephen Stumpf walked up to the 22-year-old speedster and asked her how she thought the race would benefit her Truck Series career.

According to Deegan, the one thing that helped her the most is the knowledge that the other contenders have. Hailie believes that competing with the best in your niche only brings out the best in you. Deegan showed utmost modesty when she mentioned the names of her fellow competitors and referred to them as “really good drivers.”

She said, “I learned a lot of the other veteran guys around me […] Seriously it’s Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, these aren’t slouches to say the least, these are really really good drivers. So there’s always something that can be learned from that”

Would Hailie have missed out on a lot, had she not gone to Berlin? Initially, she would have said no. But after the race, the #13 Truck driver had a very different answer.

“I haven’t been to Berlin before. Heard a lot about it. It’s definitely one of those tracks people talk about when they are talking about tracks that eat up tires; tires wear super bad; low grip; gotta really take care of it yourself. […] But, honestly after coming here, tonight had really taught me a lot about tire management. […] There wasn’t many races where I had to manage tires like how I did tonight […] So I think I learned a lot,” she admitted.

Watch this story: Fans Bash NASCAR Driver for Calling Hailie Deegan “Talentless” Despite Her Remorse

And it seemed to have paid off. One might want to look back and recall the horrible accident that Haile Deegan encountered due to an issue with her truck’s tires.

Hailie Deegan’s 2022 tire trauma

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The tension between Hailie and her truck tires is not new. If we go back in time to last year’s NASCAR Truck Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, there was another tire anomaly. She was hit from behind by another truck, which caused damage to the left rear tire of her Ford F-150. Hailie had started the race at 27th and she made her way up to 19th with just 8 laps in. Unfortunately, the high-speed impact forced her to pit under the green flag.

However, as she resumed racing, she could smell smoke and started choking. A crew member had to carry her out to the infield care center. She could not even give an interview about the incident because she could barely manage to speak without coughing incessantly.

Accidents like these can never be predicted. However, with experience, one can somewhat minimize the impact. Driving alongside veteran NASCAR stalwarts like Tony Stewart and Kevin Harvick, must have given Hailie an ample chance to learn new things about the sport. And after her respectable top 5 finish at Berlin, one could say that she is a fast learner.

Read more: Hailie Deegan Keeping Her Spirits High Amidst Horror NASCAR Season as She Attends a Concert of “The Greatest”