Tyler Reddick has finished consistently during most of his NASCAR Cup Series appearances this season. In what has been a milestone year for the #45 Toyota driver in terms of his performance, Reddick has managed to ramp up his results in 2024. However, his visit to Darlington earlier this year was not one of them.
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The 23XI Racing star suffered his worst-ever finish at the track earlier in the year, crossing the line in P32. However, that does not portray the complete story of Reddick’s race that particular weekend.
The 28-year-old would have finished inside the top two had it not been for a late incident with Chris Buescher. Another major implication that weekend’s result would have had on Reddick’s regular season battle is that he would have been comfortably clear of his competition had he finished inside the top two.
“Yeah, I really wish I could have looked into the future and saw where I’d be points. I would have taken that second place right about now because I’d be just going into Darlington and not worrying about racing the 5 (Larson) or the 9 (Elliott) at all,” the #45 driver said in a pre-race press conference.
Reddick currently sits 17 points ahead of Kyle Larson and 18 ahead of Chase Elliott going into the Southern 500. If he runs as consistently as he has so far this season, it should not be a problem for him to claim those priceless 15 playoff points as well as the regular season champion trophy. However, Reddick’s desire to win when the sport last visited ‘The Lady in Black’ made those margins closer than they would have otherwise been.
The result of the previous Darlington race also has had a ripple effect going into the regular season finale. If Reddick had settled for P2, he would have been a lot further ahead in the regular season championship. It also would have allowed Buescher to win a race and make the playoffs instead of being in a precarious position on points.
Can Reddick hold off regular-season title challengers?
Reddick has never won at Darlington but his closest regular-season title challenger Larson has. With Larson’s undoubted skill behind the wheel, the 23XI star knows how much letting that P2 result go earlier this year can cost him on Sunday. However, considering how the #45 team has run recently, the 28-year-old seemed confident to go out there and get a result.
“So I learned a lot from that moment, and it’s benefited me ever since,” Reddick said. “But certainly it’s tough when I go there, because I’ve never won there. I feel like I’ve had a car and an opportunity and a day … I’ve had a number of days where I’ve been capable of winning there.”
The Southern 500 is building up to be a fantastic event as some drivers aim to win the regular season championship while others look to get into the playoffs. It will be intriguing to see how these storylines play out on Sunday.
