Tyler Reddick (No. 45) battling for position during the 67th Annual Daytona 500. (Photo: Donald Jenney | The Podium Finish)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Coming to the green flag to start overtime in the 67th DAYTONA 500, Tyler Reddick lined up in 16th place, looking like there wasn’t much hope for a victory.
After a late-race restart, he got shuffled back in the pack, losing the track position he needed and had to hope for a caution, which came on Lap 196. This allowed the Toyotas, who for most of the race to that point playing it safe, to be in a prime position to secure the win.
On the final lap heading down the back straightaway, Denny Hamlin and Cole Custer tangled while battling for the lead, causing a big pileup heading into Turn 3.
This allowed the seas to part for William Byron and Reddick who were in the top lane but slight contact with 23XI Racing co-owner Hamlin slowed him down enough for Byron to drive away to a second consecutive DAYTONA 500 win.
Tyler Reddick (No. 45) racing during the 67th DAYTONA 500. (Photo: Donald Jenney | The Podium Finish)
“I knew that me and the (No.) 24 (Byron) had a good run and they (the leaders) were throwing big blocks and when they started spinning I had a good run on the (No.) 24,” he said during his Fox Sports interview post-race. “I thought ‘Man if I could just snake through and the (No.) 11 (Hamlin) not scrub my speed’ I would’ve at least had an opportunity to do something.”
Despite winning a Duel in 2024, Daytona International Speedway had been a tough place for Reddick during the DAYTONA 500, having a best of finish of just 27th in “The Great American Race” coming into the season.
The runner-up result allows him and his No. 45 team to start the season off with some momentum after a good points day.
Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace, his 23XI Racing teammate, talk on pit road following the DAYTONA 500. (Photo: Donald Jenney | The Podium Finish)
“I’ve never really finished a race here unless it was 40 laps down, so I’ll take second (place), he said. “We wanted to get a good start to the year and we scored a lot of points today so I’m really happy with everyone’s effort.”
The runner-up finish also tied for 23XI Racing’s best finish in the DAYTONA 500, with the other coming back in 2022 when Bubba Wallace was narrowly beaten to the start/finish line by Austin Cindric.
The defending NASCAR Cup Series regular-season champion sits in fourth place in the standings heading into Atlanta for race No. 2 of the season, a place where he finished sixth the last time the series visited and will look to continue the momentum gained from Daytona.
