23XI Racing driver Tyler Reddick took his fifth NASCAR Cup victory of the season at the AdventHealth 400 at Kansas. However, he had one regret that followed him despite the win. 

During the 267-lap race, a late caution was thrown in after Cody Ware went spinning with one lap to go. This sent the race into overtime as drivers came down the pit lane to take new tires. It is during the restart that the incident took place.

Denny Hamlin, Tyler Reddick, Kyle Larson, and Christopher Bell were in a four-way battle for the lead. The No. 45 driver made contact with Bell coming out of turn 2, sending the JGR driver spinning into the wall just before the white flag. 

During his post-race interview with Jamie Little, Tyler Reddick spoke about the incident, taking responsibility and apologizing to Bell. He said:

"First off, I feel like I have to say, just for how I feel, I never like being on the other side of it. I really hate that for Christopher Bell. It's good, hard racing. The 11 came up, and I just took off tight. Not thrilled that I got Christopher there. I hate that for him, because he was having a good, solid day."

Elaborating on the volatile nature of late restarts, Reddick added, "These late-race restarts, it gets really, really crazy there. Obviously, had a run on the 5 and I was just shocked I was able to get to his inside there.”

Tyler Reddick wasn't dominant throughout the race, which saw Denny Hamlin lead a field-high 131 laps. However, the 23XI driver knew how to position his car for the win. He overtook Kyle Larson in the last two corners to add another historic victory to his name.

Tyler Reddick etches his name alongside Dale Earnhardt Sr after Kansas victory

Tyler Reddick crossed the finish line 0.118 seconds ahead of Kyle Larson to take his fifth triumph in nine races. With that, he became only the fourth driver ever to do so in the opening part of the season.

He etched his name alongside some of NASCAR's legends like Richard Petty (1975), Cale Yarborough (1977), and Dale Earnhardt (1978). However, the record is still held by the late Earnhardt, who won six times in the first eight races in 1978.

23XI co-owner Michael Jordan was ecstatic after Tyler Reddick's victory. He felt that the 30-year-old's performances have been "unbelievable" in 2026, and there seems to be no way to "cool him down."

Read more at the RFK Racing Digest!

Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco

Edited by

Yask Kotak