SPEEDWAY, Ind.: Tyler Reddick had a shot.
In NASCAR’s return to the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the driver of the No. 45 Toyota had by far the fastest car entering the 30th running of the Brickyard 400.
Reddick topped the speed chart in Friday’s practice and posted the Best 10 Consecutive Lap Average during the session. On Saturday, he won the pole and led the field to green alongside his 23XI Racing team owner Denny Hamlin.
Reddick led 40 of the first 55 laps, but a loose wheel during pit stops at the end of Stage 2 on Lap 102, mired the No. 45 Toyota deep in the field—but Reddick never gave up.
“It was a great recovery for us,” said Reddick, who fought his way from 31st to second on Sunday. “We had our issues beginning stage three. I thought that was really going to cement our finish towards the back. We went with a different strategy, had a really good restart. I was behind the 5 (Kyle Larson) and the 9 (Chase Elliott), got by both of them.”
Billy Scott pitted the No. 45 Car on Lap 124 along with Elliott and one lap later than Larson. Moments later, Martin Truex Jr. spun to cause the seventh caution. Reddick had moved ahead of Larson at the caution and passed Elliott on the restart.
The strategy played into Reddick’s hands. He had plenty of fuel to go the distance. However, Larson’s experience running the IndyCar during the month of May and in the Indianapolis 500 added tricks to his arsenal. Within a few circuits of the Lap 130 restart, Larson picked off Reddick.
“Unfortunately, when Kyle got to me and passed me like he did, I wasn’t expecting it,” Reddick said. “It was really creative, and he continued to catch the rest of the field and pass cars. I wish I could’ve seen that one coming and maybe defended that better.”
Reddick’s day was far from over. He was running eighth with 10 laps remaining in the advertised distance of 160 laps. Reddick had gained positions before Kyle Busch made contact with Denny Hamlin while the drivers were battling for fifth place. The eighth caution sent the race into overtime—and Reddick restarted fourth.
Brad Keselowski, who led 34 laps prior to the caution, pitted for fuel and the lead turned over to Larson. The race had barely returned to action when NASCAR threw the red flag following a multi-car wreck involving Hamlin, John Hunter Nemechek, Chase Briscoe, Daniel Hemric and Alex Bowman. NASCAR restarted the race on Lap 166 and Reddick easily passed Blaney for second.
Reddick retained his third place in the NASCAR Cup point standings. He trails Larson by 15 points.
“We bring home our Beast Unleashed Toyota Camry second but a good points day,” said Reddick, who scored points in both stages. “Didn’t score as many as the 5 (Larson), but nonetheless, a fairly solid points day.
“The biggest thing that we’ve been doing really good right now, is we haven’t had always had the smoothest days. Instead of letting them end our days, we found ways to recover from them feels like the last couple of months.
“Great effort by the guys, men and women at 23XI. We’ll go into our little break ready to relax for a little bit and recharge, get ready to go for the rest of the year.”
Follow Lee Spencer on Twitter @CandiceSpencer or email her at: [email protected].
