HAILIE DEEGAN Climbs from Last to 14th in Indy NXT Debut at St. Petersburg

March 2, 2025

from tireball.com

• HAILIE DEEGAN completed her Indy NXT debut with a 14th place finish at St. Petersburg, managing to stay on the lead lap despite qualifying dead last. While the climb from 27th to 14th sounds impressive on paper, it came largely through attrition rather than pure pace – she was credited with just two on-track passes during the race.
• The transition from stock cars to open wheel proved challenging for DEEGAN, who struggled in both practice sessions and qualifying before finding her footing during the race. Her 14th place result represents solid damage control for someone learning an entirely different style of racing, though there’s clearly work ahead to become competitive in the series.
• DEEGAN’s next opportunity to show improvement comes at Barber Motorsports Park on May 4th, where the more traditional road course layout might suit her developing open wheel skills better than the demanding street circuit of St. Petersburg.

andretti global, indy nxt, open wheel, st. petersburg