Hailie Deegan makes career decision after being dumped by NASCAR team

Hailie Deegan's NASCAR dream is on pause as she joins INDY NXT team HMD Motorsports for 2025 after being brutally dropped mid-season in the Xfinity Series.

The 23-year-old raced in the Craftsman Truck Series from 2021-23 before moving up to the Xfinity Series with AM Racing this season. Her transition into NASCAR's second-tier series was challenging, lasting only 17 races before being replaced by two-time Cup Series champion Joey Logano for the Chicago Street Race in July.

Harrison Burton will take over for AM Racing in Deegan's stead next season. Deegan's top performance was at Talladega Superspeedway in April, where she placed 12th.

Now, with her stock car racing career on hold, Deegan is returning to open-wheel racing, a skill she honed in karting. INDY NXT is roughly equivalent to the Xfinity Series. Deegan, daughter of X Games gold medalist Brian Deegan in Moto X and RallyCross, will make her debut in the No. 38 at the Chris Griffis Test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday.

• Denny Hamlin hits out at NASCAR playoff tracks as 'lifelong' dream hangs by a thread
• NASCAR legend perfectly sums up Denny Hamlin's Cup Series Championship dilemma

"I am excited about the opportunity and look forward to working with a proven program in HMD Motorsports," Deegan expressed. "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."

California's own Deegan, who boasts an impressive record in ARCA Menards with 21 top-10 finishes, is set to become the fifth member of HMD's lineup for the upcoming season. She'll be joining forces with Caio Collet, Josh Pierson, Tommy Smith, and Bryce Aron.

Team president Mike Maurini couldn't hide his excitement about having Deegan on board, stating: "Hailie, and especially the Deegan name, are huge in motorsports, and we welcome them to the HMD Motorsports family."

He added that Deegan has already visited the shop and is taking her transition to open-wheel racing seriously, even looking for a place in the Indianapolis area to stay close to the team and work closely with her engineer.

Maurini said: "We want to make sure she and all the other HMD Motorsports drivers are as ready as possible for every on-track session."

The INDY NXT season is set to kick off on March 2 with a street race in St. Petersburg, Florida, followed by a more than two-month break before the next race – the Grand Prix of Alabama on May 4.