NASCAR News: Reddick overcomes adversity to win at Darlington

DARLINGTON, S.C.— It’s almost impossible to keep a good man down — especially when he’s on the kind of roll Tyler Reddick (pictured)  is enjoying right now.

Overcoming a cascade of problems inside his No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota, Reddick delivered a commanding victory in Sunday’s Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway, beating runner-up Brad Keselowski by 5.847 seconds.

It was Reddick’s fourth win in just six races this season, following his record-setting sweep of the first three events. Only Dale Earnhardt (1987) and Bill Elliott (1992) have previously won four of the first six Cup races in a season.

The 30-year-old from Corning, California, had to fight through adversity all afternoon. A malfunctioning alternator forced the team to disable non-essential electrical systems, leaving Reddick without a cool suit in the South Carolina heat. A battery change during a pit stop dropped him to the rear of the field, and trouble with the right-front tire on their first green-flag stop produced a sluggish 16.3-second stop that cost six positions.

A late-race incident with Chris Buescher on Lap 242 of 293 added another hurdle.

Yet after his final pit stop on Lap 246, Reddick erased a seven-second gap to Keselowski — who led a race-high 142 laps — and took the lead for good on Lap 266.

“I’m pretty sure it’s frustrating for him because he had an unbelievable car,” 23XI co-owner Michael Jordan said. “The key was just keeping his head… Billy [Scott] did a good job keeping him calm. He kept his composure and did an unbelievable job.”

Reddick, who started from pole and led 77 laps, called it a fitting first win at the Track Too Tough to Tame.

“I know never to give up,” he said. “We’ve been so close so many times here. Lap 1 we had the charging problem… All day long, just no fans. Sweat my tail off inside the race car. Really worn out, but I guess I don’t need as much of that cooling stuff as I normally have.”

Keselowski, running a tribute paint scheme for the late Greg Biffle, finished second.

“We didn’t have the best car today. Not compared to Tyler,” he said. “Tyler drove a hell of a race, and he’s driving a rocket, and he’s making it count right now. We scored a lot of stage points, second place, first place loser — but that’s OK. We’re doing the things we need to do.”

Ryan Blaney finished third, Carson Hocevar rallied to fourth after starting at the rear, and Austin Cindric rounded out the top five. Ty Gibbs, Daniel Suarez, William Byron, Chris Buescher and Erik Jones completed the top 10.

The Cup Series heads next to Martinsville Speedway on March 29 for the Cook Out 400.

Aerage Speed of Race Winner:  129.854 mph.

Time of Race:  3 Hrs, 4 Mins, 56 Secs. Margin of Victory:  5.847 Seconds.

Caution Flags:  4 for 26 laps.

Lead Changes:  16 among 8 drivers.

Lap Leaders:   T. Reddick 1-45;B. Keselowski 46-95;K. Larson 96-112;B. Keselowski 113;K. Larson 114-116;B. Keselowski 117-145;C. Elliott 146-151;B. Keselowski 152-194;C. Briscoe 195-198;C. Buescher 199-201;T. Gibbs 202;C. Buescher 203-240;B. Keselowski 241;T. Reddick 242-245;C. Hocevar 246-247;B. Keselowski 248-265;T. Reddick 266-293.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  Brad Keselowski 6 times for 142 laps; Tyler Reddick 3 times for 77 laps; Chris Buescher 2 times for 41 laps; Kyle Larson 2 times for 20 laps; Chase Elliott 1 time for 6 laps; Chase Briscoe 1 time for 4 laps; Carson Hocevar 1 time for 2 laps; Ty Gibbs 1 time for 1 lap.

Stage #1 Top Ten: 6,45,12,23,5,17,9,2,7,24

Stage #2 Top Ten: 6,17,5,19,45,60,24,2,54,7