Former NASCAR driver Hailie Deegan drops "off-season testing" video ahead of her Indy NXT debut 

Hailie Deegan shared a video showing off-season testing as she prepares for her Indy NXT debut this season. The 23-year-old raced in the NASCAR Truck Series for three years and moved to the Xfinity Series last season.

Deegan switched to open-wheel racing after being let go mid-season by AM Racing. She will compete in the INDY NXT with HMD Motorsports in the No. 38 entry for the full 14-race calendar. The California native will join teammates Caio Collet, Josh Pierson, Tommy Smith and Bryce Aron.

In her latest post on Instagram, where she has over 1.6 million followers, Deegan was seen testing before the season starts in March and wrote:

"Some off-season testing 🔥 @monsterenergy"

Deegan made her open-wheel debut at the Circuit of the Americas last November with Toney Driver Development in Formula Regional Americas, where she finished fifth after qualifying 11th in her first practice session.

Deegan also tested for the Indy NXT series at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Barber Motorsports Park.

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"I was like, okay, what's next?" - Hailie Deegan on leaving NASCAR

Hailie Deegan started stock car racing in ARCA, where she won three races and had 49 top-10 finishes. She moved to the Truck Series in 2020 and had her best championship finish in 2021 at 17th place.

She raced in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for 18 races and announced her move to open-wheel racing in October 2024. Deggan talked about the switch during an interview and revealed her thought process after leaving NASCAR.

"About two weeks after I stopped on the Xfinity side, I was really like, I didn’t really linger very much. Like, I was like, okay, what's next? Like, what are we working towards next? Let's make our goals... And just kind of seeing and weighing out the pros and cons of everything," Deegan said.

"And that's when I was like, you know what, like, I feel like I'm decent friends with a few guys in the IndyCar scene, and like, people I used to race IndyCar with. And I kind of was just poking around, talking a little bit to a few people that, like, I grew up go-karting with and just kind of asking, and like, at questions, and just seeing it out. And I'm like, you know, let's go to the IndyCar race at Iowa," she added.

Deegan further stated that she spoke with people in IndyCar and her preference for tracks with high grip and road courses led her to the series. The 2025 IndyCar season will start with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg at the street circuit in Florida.