Tyler Reddick hopes to live up to his No. 45 car’s message. (Photo: Kevin Ritchie | The Podium Finish)
NORTH WILKESBORO, N.C. – With Sunday night’s NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway looming ahead for drivers like Tyler Reddick, the $1 million prize will be a bit of a challenge to pursue.
Namely, Reddick will take the green flag from the 20th position for this Sunday night’s race at North Wilkesboro Speedway after placing 10th in Saturday night’s second qualifying heat.
Nevertheless, Reddick has seen some impressive results from the most recent races in his No. 45 The Beast Unleashed 23XI Toyota Camry despite a 22nd place finish at Darlington, earning a ninth place finish at Kansas and a seventh place finish at Dover.
Things could be a little different for the California native during this week’s race, however, because this will be the first time that the NASCAR series has raced at North Wilkesboro Speedway in 27 years.
This race will be full of unknowns for everyone, but especially for the younger drivers in the field such as Reddick, who was just eight months old the last time the NASCAR series raced at the historic short track.
Even so, Reddick has an appreciation for the historic track, marveling at the tremendous turnout as early as Wednesday night for the CARS and ASA races.
Reddick has showcased his all-star form since joining the 23XI Racing organization in 2023. (Photo: Kevin Ritchie | The Podium Finish)
“Yea, it’s really cool,” Reddick said to TSJSports’ Peter Stratta. “The stands were packed here for the Truck race. I came out here on Wednesday night. There were a lot of people out here supporting the late model racing.
“It was really cool to see all the excitement and all the people here, all the people at their houses along these little country roads with parking for $10, $20, $50… it’s just really cool to finally see NASCAR back here after all this time.”
Reddick seems up for the task, and eager to learn, though, because back in March he was the first driver to log laps at the renewed track for a tire test. However, with additional patches applied to the surface, which has not been repaved since 1981, and the facilities revitalized, the Californian is elated about racing at this charter track.
“Hats off to Marcus Smith and everyone that’s been involved in getting this to happen,” he said. “They’ve done a really good job. It’s really cool to see all of this in real life.”
Just do not expect Reddick to dip his No. 45 Camry below the apron, a sight which was commonplace in Saturday’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race. Although it was not unusual to see Cup cars take to this portion of the track’s corners, today’s Cup cars are not so conducive to this trickier segment of the 0.625-mile venue.
“I don’t expect it to, for sure, “he said. “The cars are a little bit different. The sidewall is a lot smaller on the Next Gen tire, so I’m not sure it will. But I guess we’ll try.
