Hailie Deegan is preparing for her 4th season in the top tiers of NASCAR in 2024. Her journey thus far has been nothing less of inspirational despite the lackluster off-track performances that have marred her. Breaking into NASCAR is no menial job, and to do it in an age where women are still the overwhelming minority takes resilience and strength. Talking about it, Deegan says that there are a lot of challenges about being a woman in racing, but she tends not to focus on them.
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Conversing with Jason Stein from Cars and Culture, she said, “I’m so focused on what I’m trying to accomplish. I don’t like looking at that like, ‘Oh! It’s hard for a girl in racing!’ I don’t like being a person that looks at the negatives. I like being the glass-half-full type of person.”
However, she did address a big hurdle and added, “There are a lot of challenges when you are a girl in racing. It’s tough because I feel like you’re automatically looked at as you can easily be taken advantage of on the track.” On tackling this problem, she says girls ought to give off the impression that they aren’t pushovers.
Just 22 years of age, Deegan has already completed 3 full-time seasons in the Truck Series. Just like when it seemed that her time in NASCAR was done after a weak run in 2023, she surprised everyone by landing a ride in the Xfinity Series for 2024.
Progress like this certainly doesn’t come from being a person who looks at the negatives. And Deegan is looking to take on bigger challenges in the coming season.
Hailie Deegan prepares to take on bigger challenges in 2024
As far as Deegan is concerned, being a girl doesn’t mean that the standards that can be expected from her should be any different from those of her fellow men. She said back in 2021, “I’m out there trying to develop and be the best driver I could possibly be, not just be the best girl, obviously. I want to be an inspiration for other girls to get into racing.”
“But, I don’t try to set a standard differently because I am a girl.”
True to her words, Deegan will continue to be the only full-time female driver in the Xfinity Series next year and will vie for the same goal as the rest of the grid.
With Rookie of the Year honors once again on the line for her, she will be hoping to make use of her new AM Racing crew chief Joe Williams’ expertise and her brand new #15 Ford Mustang to pose a tough challenge to her male counterparts.
