Michael Jordan won a championship in Phoenix in 1993. Tyler Reddick ensured that his car owner will have a chance to win another title there this year.
Jordan’s involvement in NASCAR has drawn significant attention, bringing a new fan demographic to the sport. His partnership with fellow co-owner and NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin has been instrumental in shaping 23XI Racing’s strategic path. Together, they have set clear goals, aiming to turn the team into a competitive force in NASCAR in record time.
The Homestead win underlines this success, making 23XI Racing a formidable presence and a source of inspiration for other emerging teams. Jordan’s ambition for the team, inspired by his illustrious career in basketball, has translated into a focused approach in NASCAR, aiming to win championships and broaden the sport’s reach to a more diverse audience
Reddick went high and overtook Ryan Blaney on the final turn to win at Homestead-Miami on Sunday to secure a spot in NASCAR’s winner-take-all finale in Arizona in two weeks. Reddick led 98 of the 267 laps, the last of them the one that mattered most.
Tyler Reddick outdueled Ryan Blaney on the final lap, winning at Homestead-Miami Speedway to earn a spot in the NASCAR Cup Series championship race.
It’ll be the first appearance in the Championship 4 for 23XI Racing, the team co-owned by Denny Hamlin and basketball legend Michael Jordan. The six-time NBA champion watched Reddick’s win from the pits.
“Little kid drove his ass off,” Jordan told NBC Sports’ Dave Burns. “I’m proud of him. Oh man, he just let go. He just went for it, and I’m glad. We needed it. We needed it.”
Reddick, who started from the pole position and led a race-high 97 of 267 laps, finished 0.241 seconds ahead of Blaney and joined Joey Logano in the championship round. It was a major turnaround from Reddick’s flip a week earlier at Las Vegas Motor Speedway that put him in a must-win situation.
Reddick — the regular-season champion and the driver who started from the pole Sunday, a week after he went upside down in Las Vegas — and Joey Logano now are assured two of the four spots in NASCAR’s final four at Phoenix.
“He has an abundance of talent,” Dave Rogers, the performance director for 23XI Racing, said about Reddick. “He’s determined to win. He puts the work in.”
Reddick was third behind Blaney and Hamlin going into the final lap. He went low and got around Hamlin, and the three cars settled into a straight line along the wall before Reddick stayed high to scoot past Blaney.
“We’re going to do what it took to win this race,” Reddick said, moments before Jordan wrapped his arms around him and not long before teammate Bubba Wallace — fists high in the air like a fighter celebrating a title — came over to offer his congratulations as well. “We’re fighting for a championship.”
Reddick became Homestead’s ninth different winner in the past nine years, joining Jimmie Johnson in 2016, Martin Truex Jr. in 2017, Logano in 2018, Kyle Busch in 2019, Hamlin in 2020, Byron in 2021, Kyle Larson in 2022 and Bell last year.
Logano was the only of the eight playoff drivers who came to Homestead assured of a berth in the season finale. He spent much of the day in the middle of the pack.
The other seven playoff drivers all jousted toward the front for the majority of the 267 laps. Hamlin led with two laps to go, Larson with one lap left, and then Reddick at the end.
“Had a great shot to win and I didn’t have a very good last lap,” said Blaney, who was also second at Homestead last year.
Bell and Byron have the inside track to grab the last two spots in the winner-take-all final four, though any of the six drivers who haven’t clinched a berth yet can by simply winning at Martinsville next week.
And championship week now has yet another twist. A hearing in the lawsuit that Jordan is part of against NASCAR over revenue sharing is scheduled for Nov. 4, six days before Reddick will try to win him a title in the desert.
Looking ahead, the win at Homestead not only elevates Reddick’s career but also inches Jordan closer to what would be a historic NASCAR title. As Reddick prepares for the final races, the team’s momentum and morale are at an all-time high, with both the driver and ownership poised to take on the championship challenge. If Reddick continues his strong performance, 23XI Racing could make history as one of the youngest teams to win a title, marking a significant milestone for Michael Jordan’s NASCAR venture and setting a precedent for future teams in the sport