Tyler Reddick has fallen to sixth in the NASCAR Cup Series standings after a dramatic shunt at the South Point 400.
Reddick dropped from third to sixth in the championship as a result of his mega accident, which has dented his Championship 4 hopes.
The 23XI Racing driver was OK after the incident, which he recovered by driving back to the pit lane to the surprise of some.
It’s a shame mainly because he was guaranteed to be inside the top four of the title race heading into Homestead Miami next week, only to see things turned upside down.
Tyler Reddick says being ‘aggressive’ caused him ‘trouble’
Reddick is now 20 points adrift of the cutoff, leaving him chasing results in the next few races of the season.
It would be a shock if he were to fail to make the playoffs, considering that he has been one of the most consistent drivers all year.
Speaking to On3 about the mishap after the race, he mentioned how aggression may have been part of the reason for his downfall.
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“Yeah, you just have to be aggressive on restarts. It’s obviously how the Next Gen racing has been from the beginning.
“I kind of saw them both have a moment, and I just had to split second make a decision. You have to be aggressive on the restart.
“It is hard to pass after a while. Being myself on a mile and a half, being aggressive – by the time I realized I was in trouble, (Martin Truex Jr.) started sliding and (Chase Elliott) was coming up, and I was pretty much already on their outside at that point, with nowhere to really go.”
How has Reddick’s downfall come around?
The 28-year-old was crowned regular season champion for 2024, making the potential of an exclusion from the Championship 4 a big surprise.
He’s endured a dismal last six races, failing to finish inside the top 10 once, which he had achieved only eight times in 27 races before this run.
He must find himself a top-three finish, and a few more top 10’s if he wants any chances of a maiden Championship 4 appearance.
His dream run of five top-three finishes in six races feels like a world away, having failed to achieve one of them in nine races since.
Watch out for Reddick, who qualified second in Las Vegas and still has the pace, but just needs to bring all the elements together to enjoy success.