Hailie Deegan loses Xfinity ride, leaving racing future uncertain

Hailie Deegan, mired in 28th in the Xfinity Series standings midway through her rookie season, has parted ways with AM Racing. 

The announcement Monday morning was not a surprise. She was 27th in the standings after 16 events and then was replaced for the Chicago street course race Saturday by two-time Cup champion Joey Logano as the team likely had to qualify on speed and she had to rely on an owners points provisional to get in the three previous road-course races. Logano qualified 15th and finished eighth in Saturday's race. 

The daughter of famed extreme sports star Brian Deegan, Hailie is at a career crossroads as she turns 23 next week and is now looking for her next ride. Both Deegan and AM Racing posted statements on X, formerly known as Twitter, confirming her departure. AM Racing has not named a replacement.

"There are always several reasons within a race team as to why things do or do not work, but sadly our goals no longer align," Deegan’s post said. 

It has been a rough road for Deegan after showing potential in winning three ARCA West Series races in 2018-19 and, after a move from Toyota to Ford as part of its driver development program, finishing third in the 2020 ARCA national series standings despite not having any significant stock-car experience before turning 16. 

She made the jump to NASCAR’s truck series in 2021. Over three seasons, she managed five top-10s with an average finish of 21st.

Having likely maxed out what she could learn in a truck, she moved to the Xfinity Series with AM Racing, which had former truck series champion Brett Moffitt for its first full Xfinity season in 2023, and Moffitt finished 15th in the standings with an average finish of 18th.

Deegan had an average starting spot of 29th and finish of 27th driving for AM Racing. She finished on the lead lap four times with a best finish of 12th at Talladega. That was her third top-20 finish in nine races but in the ensuing eight races, her best was 20th and she had just two top-25 finishes.

"We wish Hailie the best in her future endeavors and look forward to her continued success on and off the track," AM Racing said in a statement.

Deegan has a strong social media presence with 3.2 million followers on TikTok, 1.6 million followers on Instagram and 583,000 subscribers to her YouTube channel.

"The only thing I am focused on is getting back to being competitive," Deegan said in her post. "That is ALL that matters to me. I’m working as quick as possible to find the best opportunities to get back to the track.

"I’m thankful for the following that I have and everyone who supports me. It’s truly only me that knows the whole story and what I need to succeed."

Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.