Hailie Deegan’s ARCA debut didn’t go the way she or her fans had hoped. And the 17-year-old racing phenom isn’t happy about it.
Deegan, the daughter of motocross legend Brian Deegan, made her ARCA Menards Series debut Sunday night in the Sioux Chief PowerPEX 200 at Toledo Speedway. It was a highly anticipated affair, as Deegan is the only female driver to win a race in the 65-year history of the K&N Pro Series. She’s nowhere near debuting in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, but Deegan nevertheless is viewed as someone capable of filling the huge void left by Danica Patrick’s retirement last year.
But Deegan’s ARCA debut ended just 28 laps in when she was collected in a three-car wreck. (You can click here to watch a video of the crash.)
After the race, Deegan took to social media to voice her displeasure.
“I told myself this weekend I was gonna play nice so I wouldn’t knock the nose off my car,” she wrote on Instagram. “I’m done playing nice. Either way I end up wrecked because of guys on the radio saying ‘don’t let that girl pass you.’ We had a good car and weren’t able to show it.”
Make of all that what you will.
Again, it might be a while before Deegan becomes a household name, and it’s unlikely she ever reaches the level of stardom that Patrick reached and continues to enjoy. Still, her success speaks for itself, and her presence and following on social media have helped make Deegan one of the most talked-about names in the sport.
