The 2.4 Hours of Le Mullets has wrapped up. In this thrilling event, two-person teams duked it out on the Freedom Factory short track, vying for the coveted Le Mullets title. This time, the duo of Joseph & Jesse from the Hunt the Front clinched victory while Hailie Deegan and her dad had to settle for second place.

After the race was over, Deegan’s dad took to Instagram to post a heartfelt video expressing his disappointment, feeling he let his daughter down. His sentiment echoed that of Brad Keselowski, who once felt like the ‘first loser’ after he allowed Chris Buescher to pass him at Daytona.

Hailie Deegan’s father recently opened up to NASCAR fans about a mixed bag of emotions

Just a month back, the news broke that Hailie Deegan was gearing up for her full-time debut in the Xfinity series next season. With high hopes in the air, she and her father threw their hats into the ring at Cleetus McFarland’s Le Mullets race. The event wasn’t new to big names. In the past, it has drawn the likes of NASCAR stars Alex Bowman and Kurt Busch, who even snagged a victory. This year was no less star-studded, with a lineup that included motocross stars, Ronnie Renner and Jeremy McGrath, NHRA’s Alex Laughlin, Blake Wilkey, and Cowboy Cerrone, the UFC fighter turned racer, teaming up with stunt pro Jim York.

The race eventually didn’t pan out as hoped for Hailie and Brian Deegan. Despite their best efforts, the father-daughter duo missed out on the first place. Brian shared his feelings candidly. On his IG video, he could be heard saying, “It’s such a good battle. There’s the prize right there [showing the cars] and no, I did not win them. I’m going home empty-handed. Second place. The second is the first loser. Super bummer. But hey guess what? I won my dollar back from Travis [Pastrana].” 

Giving the fans a glimpse of his daughter’s performance, he further said, “Hailie set me up perfectly, in the first half. Put the car in the top three.” 

Being grateful at the end of the day, he concluded, “Overall I got a race with a daughter, a fun night and I’m going home safe so just empty-handed. Damn it. See you in the next race.” The post echoed his sentiment and was captioned, “2nd is the 1st looser !! Got my [money emoji] back tho !!!”

His words mirrored Brad Keselowski’s experience when he chose to support his teammate, Chris Buescher, and settled for second place at Daytona. Keselowski reflected, “You know the second is the first loser, but we could have ended up in a ball of flames in three and four two and that would look pretty dumb.” The only difference is that, in Deegan’s case, they didn’t give Joseph and Jesse a deliberate pass. 

For Deegan’s fans, knowing that she and her father are returning home safely will be a huge relief. This is particularly poignant considering last year’s event in Bristol, where Hailie experienced the hardest crash of her career. It’s a reminder that in racing, safety is the true victory lap.

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A year ago, Hailie Deegan faced a real trial by fire

Back in 2022, Deegan joined a motley crew of racers at the Cleetus & Cars Bristol 1000, held at the renowned Bristol Motor Speedway. Her hopes for victory, however, were dashed in less than 20 laps due to a multi-car pile-up. 

While jostling for the lead, Deegan, behind the wheel of the No. 14, slammed into the outside wall. The incident happened after the car beside her got tangled up, coming out of turn two, causing a domino effect that sent the top three cars hurtling into the wall. The chaos didn’t end there, as a couple more cars veered down the track right into the path of the oncoming pack, leading to further damage.

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Deegan herself admitted in her post-race video, “That was the hardest hit I have ever had.” Now, as fans eagerly await her full-time debut as an Xfinity driver, there’s a buzz about her potential climb to the Cup Series. But that all hinges on how she fares in the Xfinity races.