Will Hailie Deegan be NASCAR's First Female Winner?

Will Hailie Deegan Be NASCAR's First Female Winner?

Many casual sports fans or people not familiar with NASCAR may think Danica Patrick was the first female racer. She was far from the first female to compete in the Cup Series, but she built a following, had more popularity, and had a larger sponsorship than any previous female driver. Now that Patrick is retired, who will be the next female racing star? One name is making headlines in the lower divisions, Hailie Deegan.

Daughter of X-Games and Motocross legend Brian Deegan, Hailie is a 17-year-old racer from Temecula, California. She grew up racing on dirt and in off road trucks, but since 2016 has been pavement racing, with aspirations of making it to the top levels of NASCAR.

In 2018, Deegan raced for Rookie of the Year honors in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West. The K&N Pro Series is a NASCAR developmental series split into the East and West divisions, where teenagers race on short tracks and road courses around the country. In terms of the NASCAR developmental ladder, the K&N Series is a step below the Truck Series.

Last September, Deegan won her first race in the K&N West Series at Idaho's Meridian Speedway. This marked the first win for any female driver in the K&N Series, and made national headlines. After this win, Deegan's popularity and following blew up virtually overnight. She now has over 345,000 followers on Instagram, which is more than nearly every NASCAR Cup Series racer.

To kick off the K&N West Series in 2019, Deegan won the season opener on the dirt track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, her 2nd win in a stock car. Her popularity blew up again, racing fans and media alike are calling for her to move up to the next level.

Just days after her Las Vegas win, Deegan announced the next step in her young racing career. Later this season, she will make select starts in the ARCA Racing Series. ARCA is similar to the K&N Series, as they are a developmental level primarily for young drivers. However, the ARCA tour is national; they race on a variety of tracks from Daytona to Iowa.

Deegan's ARCA starts this year will be mostly on short tracks, which will suit her driving background. From her part time ARCA schedule, she will likely go full time in this series next season. After ARCA, expect to see her in a NASCAR Truck, followed by Xfinity and the Cup Series.

The main concern of Hailie's rise in popularity is the risk of her being rushed through the developmental series. For many previous drivers, they did not pay their dues in the lower divisions, and never showed their true talents in Cup. For Deegan, this should not be an issue, as she has many loyal sponsors backing her, and the support of both her father and Toyota Racing.

Deegan's very brief time in stock cars has been a steep learning curve, but she has excelled to this point. Deegan has stated herself how she does not want to rush through the respective series and get to the Cup Series too soon, which is a great mindset. If Deegan can stay determined, she may be the first race winner in NASCAR national series competition, and may someday in the next 5 or so years make it through to the Cup Series.