Tyler Reddick has spoken candidly about his NASCAR performance in 2025, drawing comparisons to his championship-winning run last season. Despite not securing a win after 30 races and feeling the pressure from supporters and everyone at 23XI Racing, Reddick believes the season’s struggles are more nuanced than a simple fall from grace.
Consistency Eludes Reddick Despite Strong Functional Metrics
While Reddick remains winless, his overall statistics reveal a competitive edge in several areas. He is currently fifth in passing, ninth in defensive driving, sixth in speed, and fifth in restarts. The critical issue, as Reddick pointed out earlier this week, stems from a lack of clean, mistake-free races. Notably, his pit crew’s ranking has dropped to 19th in the series, illustrating the importance of flawless teamwork in the tightly contested NASCAR environment.
On a recent episode of the Door Bumper Clear podcast, Reddick addressed perceptions of underperformance, offering a measured perspective on the season’s results.
“I think when you really look at the details of it, it is not an improvement over last year, yes. Yeah, we haven’t performed quite like what we did last year. But it’s not like to an astronomical level,”
Tyler Reddick, NASCAR driver. He went on to highlight how crucial every aspect of execution is for success, noting,
“When you don’t execute, when you don’t have a clean race, you’re not going to have the opportunity to win races, and you’re not going to get those top 10s and top 5s that you’re able to get when you have those clean days. I think when I was looking at it last, we scored like 50 or 60 less points than we did last year. It just shows the top teams have had cleaner years.”
Tyler Reddick, NASCAR driver.
Reddick’s breakdown of their current standing compared to the previous season demonstrates how small setbacks can make a substantial difference in the Next Gen era. He elaborated,
“When you look at where we’re at, where we run and what our speed is compared to the field, I think last year we were the fastest car looking at the numbers you wanna look at. The last time I looked at it, we were top two or top three. Maybe that’s changed a little bit over the last couple weeks. It doesn’t take much in this Next Gen era, if you will, to go from contending for race wins every week to struggling to finish 10th.”
Tyler Reddick, NASCAR driver.
Pushing for Victory Amid Playoff Pressure
This season, Reddick has led just 156 laps, accumulating 10 top-10 finishes and six in the top 5. The 23XI Racing No. 45 team endured a disappointing race at the recent Round of 12 opener in New Hampshire, where Reddick qualified fourth but crossed the finish in 21st, marking his fifth finish outside the top 10 in six races.
Reddick now finds himself 11th in the NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings and 23 points behind the cutline, adding intensity to every lap leading into the upcoming Kansas Speedway race. The drive to reach Victory Lane remains strong among Reddick and his team, including co-owner Michael Jordan and all members of 23XI Racing. Their ambition, Reddick insists, is unchanged: race to win, not merely to compete.
He reiterated this determined outlook, stating,
“I know [23XI co-owner] Michael [Jordan] feels this way, I know a lot of people at 23XI feel this way — we don’t show up just to run 10th. I don’t do this just to run 10th; I show up to make a difference and take a car that’s capable of winning and get it to Victory Lane,”
Tyler Reddick, NASCAR driver. In acknowledging the collective frustration, he added,
“We have days just get away when we’re capable of winning [and] it’s frustrating, for sure.”
Tyler Reddick, NASCAR driver.
What Reddick’s Reflections Mean for the Remainder of the Season
Tyler Reddick’s honest assessment of the 2025 NASCAR season captures a passionate drive for improvement and an unwavering commitment to high performance, both personally and across his entire team. Although the current results may not match the heights of last year, the fundamental pace and spirited ambition remain intact. Looking ahead, Reddick and 23XI Racing are channeling their focus towards executing cleaner races and reclaiming their place at the front of the field, with an eye on closing the gap and returning to Victory Lane as the playoffs continue.
