Hailie Deegan opened up on the difficulties drivers face in order to continue with their racing careers even if they have the talent to do so.
In a discussion on Kenny Wallace’s YouTube series, “Kenny Conversation,” Deegan addressed the financial challenges that define the path of many racing careers. Her fiancé, Chase Cabre, also a racer, has faced significant barriers due to financial constraints. She explained:
“He’s one of the most talented drivers I’ve ever seen that never got an opportunity past ARCA,” Deegan said of Cabre. “And that’s just how racing is. Racing is money. That’s what it is.
“Like as much as people like don’t want to admit it or like kind of fake it that it’s not, like you gotta go have money. Like whether it’s sponsor money or family money, whatever it is. And he wasn’t able to make it any further because of that.”
Hailie Deegan, driver of the #15 VIVA Tequila Seltzer Ford, looks on prior to the NASCAR Xfinity Series SciAps 200 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on June 22, 2024 in Loudon, New Hampshire. Hailie Deegan reveals difficulties all drivers face.
Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images
She continued:
“And it’s cool for me because when it comes to the merchandise side of things that I can have that family number, cause that’s a huge point for me.
“I am someone who runs strictly off sponsor money. If my sponsor gets cut, I’m done. Like that’s just how it is.”
Deegan announced her transition from NASCAR to the Indy NXT Series after an unexpected exit from NASCAR’s Xfinity Series earlier this year. The 23-year-old driver, who entered NASCAR’s national series in 2020, is now setting her sights on the open-wheel racing world, with a debut planned for 2025 with HMD Motorsports.
Speaking about her decision to move to open-wheel racing, Deegan commented, as previously reported by Newsweek Sports:
“About two weeks after I stopped on the Xfinity side, I was really — like I didn’t really linger very much.
“I was like, ‘OK, what’s next?’ What are we working towards next? Let’s make our goals. What are we looking like budget wise and what are we looking sponsor budget wise? How are we looking for different options?
“Just kind of seeing and weighing out the pros and cons of everything. And that’s when I was like, ‘You know what, I feel like I’m decent friends with a few guys in the IndyCar scene and people I used to race in IndyCar.’
“I kind of was just poking around, talking a little bit. A few people that like I grew up go-karting with and like just kind of asking questions and seeing it out. I was like, ‘Let’s go to the IndyCar race at Iowa. Let’s go check it out. Why not.’ Just kind of to see what it’s all about and when we started weighing out me as a driver, like my pros and cons [and] my best qualities in my driving are.
“Like, I like high grip stuff. I like places, tracks here are wide open a lot. I love road courses. Besides this past year, some of my best runs have been on road courses and best overall. Best qualifying and all that. The IMSA stuff on top of that, I did good on that side. So, I was like, ‘Man, maybe we should really look at this avenue.'”
