“I was embarrassed by the way that it ended”: Katherine Legge makes honest feelings known on NASCAR Cup Series debut 

British racecar driver Katherine Legge opened up about her misfortunes at Phoenix Raceway. She admitted feeling embarrassed with the race-ending mistake but vowed to continue proving her place in the sport.

Katherine Legge, 44, made headlines after crashing off turn two from 28th position on lap 215. Legge collected Daniel Suarez, who was in the lead lap in sixth-place. As a result, she exited the race early, while Suarez dropped down the order to finish 23rd.

While Legge, who drove the No. 78 Chevrolet Camaro for Live Fast Motorsports, was embarrassed because of the incident, she understood that the race was a learning experience for a first-timer.

"My goal was to finish, and that didn’t happen, and I don’t like not achieving the things I set out to achieve. I was embarrassed by the way that it ended because I made a mistake, and nobody likes to make mistakes. It was not my best work, let’s say," Legge said on her podcast, Throttle Therapy (via RACER).

She added:

"Everybody does make mistakes, but I was definitely under the spotlight, and I was trying my best not to make mistakes. I was giving everybody so much room and so much respect, and trying to do everything right, and that mistakes obviously got me a lot of negative attention."

Katherine Legge drove the No. 58 Chevrolet Camaro at Phoenix Raceway - Source: Imagn

Katherine Legge may be criticized for the race-ending crash, but Daniel Suarez didn't blame her. Instead, the No. 99 Trackhouse Racing driver slammed NASCAR for allowing inexperienced stock car drivers to compete at the Cup level.

NASCAR has given Legge the green light to compete in road courses and short oval tracks. At the same time, she understands that Xfinity Series races would help her familiarize herself with stock cars.

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"I was trying my best to stay out of trouble": Katherine Legge on incident with Daniel Suarez

Katherine Legge spoke about Daniel Suarez after their on-track collision at Phoenix Raceway. The part-time IndyCar driver shared that she had a word with Suarez. She said that the latter held no grudges against her.

The No. 58 driver tried to stay out of the lead cars but got up and made contact with Josh Berry. While Berry continued the race, Legge spun out and hit the inside wall before collecting Daniel Suarez.

Regardless, Suarez didn't criticize Legge for her mistake in the 2025 Shriners Children’s 500.

"Daniel was very sweet, actually, very kind and understanding. He was like, ‘Listen, I don’t blame you. Of course, what happened was less than ideal for me.’ Which I said, ‘Listen, it was not intention. I know that doesn’t make that any better, but I was trying my best to stay out of trouble actually, and it was just a mistake,'" Legge said.

On his part, Suarez said:

"There's nothing wrong with her [Katherine Legge]. What is wrong is NASCAR. They cannot allow somebody with no experience to run in the Cup Series. Plain and simple."

Her entry at Phoenix Raceway marked the first time a female driver made a NASCAR start since Danica Patrick in the 2018 Daytona 500.