Each week, The Athletic asks the same 12 questions to a different race car driver. Up next: Hailie Deegan, who drives in the Camping World Truck Series for David Gilliland Racing.
1. When you meet someone who doesn’t know who you are, do you ever lie about what you do for a living?
Sometimes, if I know it’s a quick interaction, I will because it’s a lot to explain. And usually they’re shocked about a girl that races NASCAR.
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And that’s going to lead to so many questions…
Exactly. But if I have time, I’ll tell them.
2. Which current driver have you known for the longest?
Probably Sheldon Creed, because we used to race off-road trucks together when we were little.
Oh, that’s a connection I didn’t even think about.
Yeah, there’s a picture of me and Sheldon when I was eight years old. And he was like 12.
Did you ever think at the time you could both be on the NASCAR path someday, or was that not even a thought?
Never even a thought. I was so young. And he was so young. So we didn’t have much interaction because at that time, a three- or four-year age gap is a lot when you’re kids. We didn’t even really hang out.
3. Can you describe to us what it feels like to crash in a race car?
It’s the most abrupt shock to your body. Most of the time, when there are hard hits and you go straight into the wall, it takes your breath away. And you’re like, (gasps to demonstrate). It knocks the wind out of you. But usually after a minute, you’re good.
4. Do you have any new habits or lifestyle changes you’ve made lately that you’re particularly proud of?
Probably sleeping a lot less because I’m working so much more.
Getting up earlier, going to bed earlier? That kind of stuff?
Yeah, I’ve always gotten up early. But I go to bed at like two in the morning now and I’ll get up at like seven. Then I get back to work.
Oh! OK. That’s still staying up late.
Yeah. (Laughs)
5. What makes you laugh during a race?
The moment that’s funny to me would be like when someone tries to take me out and kind of messes themselves up instead of me.
Has that happened more than once?
Yes. (Laughs)
OK, so this is not necessarily a rare thing.
No. Uh-uh. I can name off multiple times.
6. What is a quality or skill you envy in another driver?
I feel like I lack patience a little bit. Maybe it’s just me overall, but I wouldn’t say compared to another driver. Maybe I’m normal — or not. I don’t know. I don’t hang around too many drivers to know.
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7. This is a wild card question where I’m mixing it up for each driver. So your younger brother Haiden is a rising star on two wheels. But you have more years in the spotlight than he has had. So when it comes to the attention, what kind of advice do you give him on how to balance all of that?
He loves the attention. He loves it. He feeds off it and he loves pressure. He does such a good job with carrying himself already at such a young age. I feel like he does better than I did at that age. So honestly, he doesn’t need much coaching.
Oh, so you could get advice from him.
Pretty much. I’m like, “Why couldn’t 15-year-old me get advice from you?”
Is there anything he does listen to you on that you’re like, “Hey, you should do this …?”
I’d say spend all his money on shoes. I told him not to do that anymore. I made the same mistake when I got win bonuses. I’m like, “I’m going to go buy stuff.” That was a big mistake.
8. This has become a remote work world. If you were allowed to relocate to a different state than where the team shop is, where else would you want to live?
I really love California. I would say probably move back to California. I feel like it just fit my personality a lot. And the compound I was at and where my parents live was such a cool place that I wouldn’t have wanted to leave if I didn’t have to. But obviously, my career is No. 1 for me. So if I’ve got to be in North Carolina, I’ve got to be in North Carolina.
So someday could you see yourself with one foot in both, being able to go back and forth?
Say I ever retired, I’d probably move back to California or somewhere else that’s very pretty and kind of laid back. Maybe I’ll be the older person who just wants to sit on the beach.
9. What is an embarrassing mistake you’ve made on the track that you’re comfortable sharing with us now?
Honestly, I don’t get embarrassed much. But there was one mistake that I made at Talladega, just with communication. I was supposed to hang back with one lap to go and I hung back too much too early. So we still had four laps to go until a stage break. And it was just me being so focused, I thought I heard something that I didn’t. I thought my spotter said that, but he didn’t. He said the right thing. And that was a mistake on my part.
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So it kind of hurt me, but I think that’s also why I avoided one of the big wrecks. So it kind of helped me, but I guess we wrecked out in the end, so it didn’t really matter.
Why do you think you have a lack of embarrassment? Is that something that’s common through your whole life or is that just about racing where you don’t get embarrassed?
I feel like I’m an open book. I share so much of my life on social media and so much of my personality that I don’t really get embarrassed. Maybe that comes with negativity on social media — you just come to accept it. So I just accept everything about me. And if you have an opinion on me, I’m not going to change that opinion. You’re gonna have that opinion either way. So it doesn’t matter. I’m going to be myself.
10. If someone were to hand you an envelope, and inside of this envelope was the date of your final career win, would you want to open it?
Yes. For sure. I would want to open that letter, 110 percent. Because I would know to not put so much pressure on myself if I knew that was my last win.
11. Have you achieved your childhood dream?
I think my childhood dream was to be on the road to being successful. Have my own shop and kind of do everything on my own. I just got my first house, and to be able to do that on my own, without my parents helping me, that is truly a dream for me.
So that feeling you weren’t handed something and you did it yourself?
Yeah, it’s like I did it. I accomplished the things I want to accomplish.
12. Each week, I ask a driver to give me a question for the next interview. And the last one I did was with Daniel Suarez. And his question for you is super simple: What is your goal for 2022?
So the hopeful plan, as long as sponsor stuff goes accordingly — which it’s not done yet — would obviously be to win a Truck race. That’s the big goal. But who knows when that’s gonna happen? I still have a lot of work to do, but that would be the dream.
So the next interview I’m doing is with Landon Cassill. Do you have a question I might be able to ask Landon?
I don’t know much about him. What would be like funny things to ask? I’ve never really talked him that much.
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So he’s super good on social media. And he’s got three kids at home. His sponsor is cryptocurrency stuff …
Yes! I would like to hear his breakdown of his crypto deal. Did he get paid in crypto for that car?
The 12 Questions podcast with Hailie Deegan can be found here. Head here for previous 12 Questions interviews.
(Photo: David J. Griffin / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Jeff Gluck has been traveling on the NASCAR beat since 2007, with stops along the way at USA Today, SB Nation, NASCAR Scene magazine and a Patreon-funded site, JeffGluck.com. He's been hosting tweetups at NASCAR tracks around the country since 2009 and was named to SI's Twitter 100 (the top 100 Twitter accounts in sports) for five straight years.
