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Former NASCAR Xfinity and Truck Series driver Hailie Deegan recently compared the feeling of driving a Stock Car vs. an Indy NXT car around the Nashville Superspeedway oval circuit. Deegan posted a video that she filmed from the side of the racetrack on her Instagram story of an Indy NXT car going around the circuit.
On April 1, Indy NXT by Firestone held an open test at Nashville Superspeedway, a 1.333-mile oval in Lebanon, Tennessee. This test was crucial for all the teams and drivers to gather data and prepare for the season finale, the Music City Grand Prix, scheduled for August 31 at the same venue.
Norwegian rookie Dennis Hauger of Andretti Global topped the speed charts in his first-ever oval track experience. He clocked a best lap at 187.564 mph in the No. 28 Rental Group car. Hauger currently leads the championship, having won the season-opening race in St. Petersburg, Florida.
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The test was also very productive for Hailie Deegan, who is competing in her rookie Indy NXT season for HMD Motorsports. She clocked the best lap time of 25.9388 seconds at 184.588 mph top speed. Deegan completed a total of 127 laps, which would have given her significant time to get used to her #38 car ahead of the second race of the season at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama.
Sharing her experience of driving a stock car vs. an open-wheel car at an oval racetrack, Hailie Deegan captioned her IG Story, saying:
"A Indy NXT car at Nashville feels way different than a stock car 😂"
The Grand Prix of Alabama will take place on Sunday, May 4, and the race is scheduled to start at 11:30 AM ET.
Hailie Deegan made a decent start to her Indy NXT career
Hailie Deegan made her debut in the Indy NXT by Firestone championship on March 2, 2025, at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Transitioning from NASCAR to open-wheel racing, Deegan joined HMD Motorsports for her first full-time season in the IndyCar developmental series. She started 22nd on the grid and finished 14th, completing all laps without incident.
During the initial practice sessions, Deegan faced challenges adapting to the open-wheel car and circuit, recording significantly slower lap times than the leaders. In qualifying, she placed 11th in her group, leading her to start the race from the back of the grid.
The race saw multiple incidents, leading to 4 caution periods for a total of 11 laps. However, Hailie Deegan managed to avoid all the incidents and maintained a decent pace throughout the race. She gained eight positions to cross the chequered flag in 14th place, achieving her goal of completing the race on the lead lap without damage and gaining valuable experience.
Later on, Deegan shared that it was one of the toughest races she has ever done in her life, as she found it extremely difficult to get used to the non-powered steering wheel in Indy NXT cars.
