Hailie Deegan changing gears with motorsports career shift

Hailie Deegan is officially making a move to IndyCar style racing next season.

The 23-year-old, who has spent the past half decade chasing a NASCAR career, will compete in the Indy NXT Series with HMD Motorsports.

The series is top development divisions for the IndyCar Series and Deegan will contest all 14 rounds in 2025. The change in disciplines for the daughter of action sports star Brian Deegan comes after she just didn’t develop as a Stock Car racer.

Deegan only produced five top-10s in 85 starts across three full Truck Series seasons at DGR-Crosley and ThorSport and then half this Xfinity Series season with AM Racing before she parted ways with the organization .

“I am excited about the opportunity and look forward to working with a proven program in HMD Motorsports,” Deegan said in a press release. “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.”

Before that, she will participate in the Chris Griffis Memorial Test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course on October 18, her first time in the NXT car. She has spent the summer testing a variety of open wheel cars and will make her race debut in the Formula Regional Americas race at Circuit of the Americas.

“Hailie, and especially the Deegan name, are huge in motorsports, and we welcome them to the HMD Motorsports family,” HMD Motorsports President Mike Maurini said. “Hailie has already been out to the shop and is taking the move to open-wheel racing seriously.”

Matt Weaver is a Motorsports Insider for Sportsnaut. Follow him on Twitter .