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Hailie Deegan explains what led to her Darlington wreck 'before everyone jumps to conclusions'

JHby:Jonathan Howard•05/11/24•

Jondean25

Hailie Deegan Daytona
Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

After wrecking out of the Xfinity Series race at Darlington, Hailie Deegan wanted to set the record straight for any haters out there. This was not just a random wreck the NASCAR driver got herself into.

Hailie Deegan and other women in motorsports are often criticized harshly. When they wreck it is always their fault or a result of their “lack of skill.” Then there is half a field of men who finish worse than her each week and don’t get called out.

Today, Deegan didn’t have any time to wait. She went to social media and let everyone know – she had help on that wreck.

Deegan claims that Patrick Emerling in the No. 07 helped her wreck.

“Before everyone jumps to conclusions, I was on the top lane and the 07 (who was a lap down) doored me off turn 4 and it cut my [left rear] tire,” Deegan wrote. “I kept it out of the wall when my tire shredded but without the door foam we weren’t allowed to keep going. Not my fault they don’t have a replay.”

The replay from FOX was not great. It more or less started when Hailie Deegan was already going sideways. With a little bit of added context, it makes a lot more sense. When tires blow, it usually isn’t that left rear.

However, that left rear tire can do a ton of damage. After the tire blew apart, it just did a hell of a lot of damage to the fender and ripped all of that door foam out.

Hailie Deegan needs to make most of week off

The NASCAR Xfinity Series is going to take a week off during the All-Star break. We will still have Cup and Truck Series action at North Wilkesboro. However, Hailie Deegan and others will be off for the week before heading to Charlotte.

This rookie year hasn’t been great. It could definitely be worse, but it hasn’t been good. Three finishes inside the top-20 on the year with a season-best of P12 at Talladega. Deegan needs to make slow progress and she just hasn’t been able to do that this year.

AM Racing is trying to succeed and is looking forward to expanding in the near future. That is if everything goes according to plan. Without a few top-10 finishes, that expansion might have to wait a while.

Hailie Deegan made sure to let everyone know what happened on the track. Now we know. The next step is to get you and your team ready for Charlotte and make the most of your opportunities.