Kevin Harvick candidly blame Ford over Hailie Deegan’s NASCAR career going in the “wrong direction”

Ex-NASCAR Cup champion Kevin Harvick has explained a major reason behind Hailie Deegan’s career coming to an end.


Kevin Harvick candidly blame Ford over Hailie Deegan’s NASCAR career going in the “wrong direction”

Kevin Harvick and Hailie Deegan (Via IMAGO)

The 2024 NASCAR season marked the end of the stock car racing career of female racing prodigy Hailie Deegan. She made her full-time debut in the Xfinity Series, after three disappointing seasons in the Truck Series, with AM Racing. But after 17 races and a streak of disappointing performance they parted ways.

Hailie Deegan has now taken the most important decision of her career, as she decided to make a switch from stock racing to open wheel racing. She is set to make her full-time debut next season with HMD Motorsports in the IndyNXT, the development series.  As Deegan NASCAR career comes to an end, ex-Cup champion Kevin Harvick seems to know who to blame.

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He pointed out that Deegan leaving the Toyota Development program to sign with Ford was a major mistake. Harvick believes this marked the start of the downward spiral of the prodigy’s racing career. TRD has the bets development program of any teams and Harvick has previously made the same comment that if Deegan as stayed with Toyota, she would have had a much better career.

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Look, we can go back and talk about this scenario, and the moment that she stepped out of that Toyota program here was kind of the end and turning point of NASCAR piece of what Hailie Deegan does. As soon as she got out of that Toyota system and went into the situation that she got in with Ford, it just spiraled out of control in the wrong direction.

Kevin Harvick said via Happy Hour podcast.

Kevin Harvick asserts Hailie Deegan will have a tough transition in IndyCar

The former champion also talked about how the transition to open wheel racing will be real challenge for the driver as she will have a completely different car. Harvick is happy for Deegan and his hopeful that she can get her motorsports career back on track.

Kevin Harvick
Kevin Harvick (Via IMAGO)

It’s going to be a tough transition because it’s a completely different car. I don’t know much about the INDY NXT program and everything that goes with it. But I’m glad that she’s, hopefully, she’s happy and being able to race and do something that she’s enjoying… So hopefully she gets a fresh restart over there.

Kevin Harvick said.

Hailie Deegan is set make a new start for her career with the IndyCar move and the NASCAR community is hoping that she can re-establish herself as a solid racer yet again. It will be interesting to see if she can secure these goals.