Tyler Reddick heads into Sunday’s race at EchoPark Speedway in Atlanta with strong momentum, having won the Daytona 500 just a week ago. To add the cherry on top, he’ll be looking to make it two wins in two races.
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Ahead of the race, Reddick met with the press and was asked whether he viewed the Daytona 500 victory as a standalone achievement or simply the start of the season. His answer? A bit of both.
EchoPark Speedway, since its reconfiguration in 2021, has raced much like a superspeedway. That makes it closely comparable to the experience at Daytona International Speedway. As a result, drivers now see the opening two races as an extension of the same challenge rather than two separate ones. Reddick explained that when the second race of the season used to be held at Fontana, there was a clear distinction drivers could lean on. Now, that separation no longer exists.
Reddick said, “In today’s schedule, when you have Daytona, and then you come here, and it’s another speedway race… it doesn’t feel like it’s its own thing, because in a lot of ways, the mentality you have if it’s in a good place, Daytona, it’s very similar to what you want to do here.”
So, Reddick has seen from both sides of the mirror in years past. When he performs well in the first race, he strengthens his confidence and hopes to build on the success. When he doesn’t, he compartmentalizes the performance and moves on to the next race.
Reddick will lead the field on Sunday
Winning pole position is a big advantage at tracks like Daytona and Atlanta. Reddick has already scored big by securing the rights to start Sunday’s race from pole position. The Cup Series qualifying session was supposed to be held on Saturday morning. But showers from above prevented it from happening.
NASCAR decided to award starting positions based on the average of the car’s place in the owner standings (30%) and the entry’s finish in the most recent race (70%). The rule for this to be done was enacted only this year. Reddick will also be given his preferred pit box. Team Penske’s Joey Logano will join him in the front row.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. will start from third place, Chase Elliott will start from fourth, and RFK Racing’s Brad Keselowski will occupy fifth place.
