Hailie Deegan earns hard-fought 23rd place finish at COTA (2024)

Hailie Deegan maximised her finish in her first road course start of the season, successfully negotiating an action-packed final stage to finish in 23rd at COTA, therefore collecting important points for the owner’s championship.

Hailie Deegan earns hard-fought 23rd place finish at COTA (1)

Continuing her progress as a rookie in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Hailie Deegan maximised her potential by rallying to a 23rdplace result at Circuit of the Americas. In her first road course appearance in the series, it was a challenging event for Deegan who faced a nervy wait to find out whether she had initially qualified for the race.

Lining up 35th, the AM Racing driver finished stage one in 29th, stage two in 36th, before superbly negotiating a chaotic final stage to finish on the lead lap in 23rdposition.

Aiming to bounce back from her final stage retirement at Phoenix, Deegan was looking to secure her best result of the season at the Circuit of the Americas. With Hailie being a competent road racer, the event would serve as the perfect opportunity to kickstart a season which has shown promise, without the results to show for it.

In three previous starts at Circuit of the Americas, Deegan had achieved a best result of 14th which came in the 2021 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event for David Gilliland Racing.

AM Racing had previously made one NASCAR Xfinity Series appearance at the circuit, fielding a car for Brett Moffitt last season, with Deegan making her series debut at the track. This combination of inexperience led to the sole twenty-minute practice session proving valuable for Deegan and the team alike. Completing seven laps, Hailie’s fastest time came on her final lap of the session which placed her 33rd.

With a competitive entry list and two cars set to miss the race, only the top-33 drivers from qualifying were guaranteed a race start, with the remaining seven relying on provisional spots based on owner points standings. Deegan and AM Racing entered the weekend 32ndin owner points which put them in a perilous position ahead of what was a tense qualifying session. After being drawn into qualifying Group B, Deegan knew the target lap time she had to achieve of a 2:16.241 which would guarantee her spot in the race regardless of the times set among her Group B competitors.

Hailie fought an ill-handling car during the course of her qualifying session, with her initial laps coming up just short of the benchmark time which was required to qualify purely on time. As a result, Deegan remained on track for the majority of the session and completed the most laps of any driver in qualifying. Attempting to build confidence and improve on her best lap, it was a tense wait as despite her best efforts, Deegan was unable to improve.

Despite setting the 35thfastest time, her lap of 2:16.590 was enough to qualify with both Preston Pardus and Kaz Grala unable to set a top-33 lap time while sitting below Deegan in the owner points standings. With a long race ahead of Deegan and the AM Racing team, there would be opportunities to move forward and further work on the handling of the car.

In an attempt to further improve the car, Hailie and the AM Racing team elected to make unapproved adjustments between qualifying and the race which saw her start from the rear of the field. Taking the green flag in 36th position, it was an assured start for Deegan who avoided any initial incidents and moved up to 33rdby the conclusion of lap three.

This was, in part, due to drivers ahead receiving a drive-through penalty for cutting the course in the opening part of the lap, with these penalties proving a consistent feature of the race. In the second half of stage one, Hailie began to struggle with the handling of her car and ended the opening portion of the race in 29th, following pit stops for a number of teams ahead.

A good stop from the AM Racing crew saw Deegan begin stage two in 26th, before dropping six places on the initial restart. A further four positions were lost on lap 19, before Hailie settled into her rhythm and passed Jeremy Clements for 35thon lap 21. During stage two, crew chief Joe Williams was planning the best strategy for the crucial final stage which saw Deegan come to pit road before the conclusion of stage two, therefore remaining on-track under the caution period. Importantly remaining on the lead lap, Deegan finished stage two 36thbut was set to gain a number of positions as the pit lane opened.

Restarting from 18th, Hailie began the final stage in her highest running position to date and looked to take advantage of this track position. However, this proved to be a challenge with a number of faster cars fighting their way forward on new tyres. As a result, Deegan fell to 30that the conclusion of lap 36 before being engaged in a number of close battles.

Setting her quickest lap of the race on lap 37, she moved ahead of Chandler Smith before battling both RC Enerson and Patrick Gallagher for positions inside the top-30. Running her fastest times of the event, Hailie’s ultimate personal best time came on lap 42, before a caution on lap 43 set up a thrilling finish.

Taking advantage of this break to fit her final set of new tyres, Deegan was aiming to benefit and move forward. Restarting from 30th, Hailie moved up to 27th before an attempt of NASCAR Overtime was needed as the caution was displayed for an incident involving Ryan Ellis, Riley Herbst and Leland Honeyman Jr. As multiple drivers ahead pitted, Deegan was up to 21stat the final restart and did a nice job to negotiate the final two laps to finish in 25th.

Following two penalties for drivers ahead, Deegan was classified 23rd which was a good achievement considering the adversity she overcome in her first NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Circuit of the Americas.

Hailie maximised her finish in her first road course start of the season, successfully negotiating an action-packed final stage to finish in 23rd. Despite struggles with handling, Hailie avoided any penalties which proved valuable in collecting important points for the owner’s championship.

Gaining six spots in the driver’s standings, Deegan now sits 26thand will be looking to improve further as the NASCAR Xfinity Series returns next Saturday when the drivers tackle Richmond Raceway.

Hailie Deegan earns hard-fought 23rd place finish at COTA (2024)

FAQs

What place did Hailie Deegan finish? ›

Hailie Deegan Race Results
2024 Xfinity Race Results
DATERACEPLACE
6/29NASCAR Xfinity Series at Nashville28
6/22NASCAR Xfinity Series at New Hampshire32
6/15NASCAR Xfinity Series at Iowa25
14 more rows

How much does Hailie Deegan get paid? ›

Currently, she drives the #13 Ford F-150 for ThorSport Racing. As per TheSportsHint, Deegan's net worth is estimated to be around $2 million. Being one of the most prominent drivers in the sport right now, she's reported to be annually earning $450,000 purely from her racing earnings.

Who is Hailie Deegan driving for in 2024? ›

“We are excited to see Hailie continuing to advance her career by running full-time with AM Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2024,” Rushbrook said. “Hailie works so hard on and off the track, and AM Racing will surround her with a great team to continue her development.

Is Natalie Decker racing in 2024? ›

Natalie Decker will attempt to qualify for her second Xfinity Series race of the 2024 season at Charlotte Motor Speedway, driving the No. 92 Chevrolet for DGM Racing. Decker will have sponsorship from Bikini Zone, available at Walmart.

Who is the new girl in NASCAR? ›

Hailie Deegan competed in her rookie season in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2021, driving the No.

Where does Hailie Deegan live at? ›

Deegan currently splits time between her two residences in California and Mooresville, North Carolina.

Who is the owner of AM Racing? ›

AM Racing is a professional, multi-tiered, multi-faceted Motorsports program headquartered in Statesville, N.C., managed by longtime Motorsports veteran Kevin Cywinski and team president Wade Moore. Established in December 2015 by entrepreneur Tim Self, the team is prided on faith, honesty and intelligent performance.

Has Hailie Deegan ever won a race? ›

Hailie Deegan started racing at the age of eight and has been the only female driver in the Lucas Oil Off Road Pro series, as well as regional series to win championships in 2013, 2015 and 2016, along with being the only youth to ever win the Lucas Oil Off Road Pro series Driver of the Year award (2016).

Has a girl ever won a NASCAR race? ›

However, there have been many pioneers in the lower tiers of the sport, including Hailee Deegan who is the first woman to win a NASCAR Pro Series race.

Who is Hailie Deegan engaged to? ›

Hailie Deegan and Chase Cabre's Wedding Website - The Knot.

Did Hailie Deegan win a NASCAR race? ›

HAILIE DEEGAN MAKES HISTORY!!! First female to WIN a NASCAR pro series race! #DeeganVault #deegan #family.

Where did Hailie Deegan move to? ›

The separation with AM Racing raises concerns about the trajectory of Deegan's career which began under Toyota's development program in 2017. She later moved to Ford in 2019—a decision that has been sharply criticized by NASCAR veteran Kevin Harvick.

Did Hailie Deegan get dropped? ›

Controversial NASCAR Xfinity series driver Hailie Deegan has parted ways from her AM Racing team midway through the season.

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