Tyler Reddick knows that expectations are high in his first year driving for 23XI Racing, the Nascar Cup Series team owned by NBA legend Michael Jordan and fellow racer Denny Hamlin.
“I have great people around me,” Reddick said. “Winning races is a big goal and we want to be consistently in the top five. For me, this team and its growth produces seven cars [the first] 10 races that we can win or finish in the top five is huge.
“I’m really, really curious about our potential. We want to make the playoffs. Everyone has their goal in mind to be in the top 10 in points, but we don’t want to settle for that. We want to keep pushing.”
Reddick, 27, spent three years driving Richard Childress Racing’s No. 8 car before joining the Toyota team in 2023. With a 2022 breakout season that included three wins, Reddick emerged as one of the hottest drivers in the sport. He was so coveted by teams that 23XI originally signed him for the 2024 season, a year and a half before he was due to drive one of their cars.
But with Kurt Busch being forced to retire from full-time competition, 23XI pushed to add Reddick to the team a year early. Obviously Richard Childress Racing – Reddick’s previous team – didn’t want to keep him for a year knowing he was leaving the Chevrolet group for a rival Toyota team.
The timing meant Reddick could leave RCR at the end of the 2022 season, rather than spend another year at RCR in a third car or forcing 23XI to form a third team in 2023. And this comes after RCR insisted Reddick would remain with the team in 2023, despite the September 2022 announcement that Kyle Busch – Kurt’s brother – would take over the No. 8 car for RCR.
But a few weeks later, with Kurt’s full-time driving career coming to an end, it made sense for all sides to come to terms.
“When the news finally got to me, I was like, ‘What’s this going to look like?'” Reddick recalled.
Now here we are and both Reddick and the younger Busch are basking in the success to head into the 2023 season.
“It was really exciting,” Reddick said. “I’ve spent a lot of time in the off-season getting used to the environment that 23XI has from the previous places I’ve raced. This is the first time in many years that I have changed teams. Everything is going well on my side.”
In the first 10 races of Reddick’s 23XI tenure, he already clinched a win at the Circuit of the Americas in a dominating fashion to nearly put him in the playoffs.
The triumph was quite emotional for Reddick and Busch (who called the action on the Fox Sports show), who won the 2004 Cup Series championship.
“The only thing so beautiful is they [23XI and Toyota] make everyone feel like family,” Reddick said. “It was really cool that we could assert ourselves and win so early. It’s already huge for us to get to know Toyota and to start our first year after many years with 23XI and to work so well.
“Kurt has done a lot for the sport. He has experienced many ups and downs. There is a tremendous amount of knowledge and wisdom that he shares with me and Bubba [Wallace]. I am incredibly grateful to be driving for a team like this.”
Since joining 23XI, Reddick has been working with new partners including Xfinity. Xfinity, owned by ComcastCMCSA, is the qualifying sponsor of Nascar’s version of Triple-A where Reddick won back-to-back championships in 2018 and 2019. Now the company sponsors 10G Internet Reddick.
While Xfinity doesn’t necessarily have to sponsor a cup car, it believes this partnership fits its business model.
“Xfinity is always looking for ways to further develop our Nascar program and engage with fans,” said Matt Lederer, vice president of brand partnerships at Xfinity, in a statement. “The opportunity to work with 23XI Racing was a natural fit as we both recognize the importance of growing the sport of Nascar and finding ways to show our appreciation for those who enjoy the sport we love through unique track experiences.
“Working with the 23XI Racing fits organically into the way Xfinity engages and interacts with fans of Nascar. Following its launch earlier this year, we were able to highlight the new Xfinity 10G network through our key sponsorship of Tyler Reddick’s #45 car in Atlanta.”
Reddick is determined to continue learning from Busch, who continues to travel with the team.
“I use his experience,” Reddick said. “He helps me to overcome challenges. There were a number of things, but one thing he shared with me a number of times is how special this group is. He played a huge role in building it and I realize how special this team and organization is.”
With the Cup Series heading to Dover Motor Speedway, Reddick is sixth in the Cup Series standings and has six playoff points to his tally.
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