HAILIE DEEGAN Opens Up About IndyNXT’s Brutal Physical Reality Check

August 22, 2025

by Gowtham Ramalingam // from thesportsrush.com

• HAILIE DEEGAN sits 17th in IndyNXT standings after 12 races without a top-10 finish, but she’s getting real about what’s holding her back. The 24-year-old made the jump from NASCAR expecting better results and while we’re still waiting for those breakthrough performances, her honesty about the transition challenges shows the kind of self-awareness that separates drivers who adapt from those who don’t.
• The biggest reality check? Physical demands that caught her completely off guard. DEEGAN admitted on the Off Track podcast that despite being gym-fit for NASCAR, IndyNXT’s lack of power steering has left her struggling, especially on road courses like Barber where she was “yearning for just a tiny bit of strength” after practice. Her team at HMD Motorsports has tried tuning the steering to help, but it’s cost them performance in other areas.
• Road courses have proven to be DEEGAN’s biggest nemesis in the series, though she found the St. Petersburg street circuit more manageable – her first-ever street course experience since NASCAR doesn’t run them. While she’s still building the specific strength needed for open-wheel racing, her willingness to acknowledge these learning curves publicly shows she’s taking the long view on what could eventually be a return to stock cars with hard-earned road course experience.

barber motorsports park, hmd motorsports, indynxt, road courses