Tyler Reddick secured a stunning victory in the 68th running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday in Daytona Beach, Florida. With his No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota Camry, Reddick made a decisive move in the final 500 yards, aided by a crucial push from teammate Riley Herbst, to claim the prestigious win at the iconic “Great American Race.”
Reddick’s triumph came amid chaos behind him as Herbst’s late defensive block against Brad Keselowski triggered a multi-car scramble crossing the finish line. Reddick edged out 2023 winner Ricky Stenhouse Jr. by just 0.308 seconds, leading only the final lap in a race that saw a record 25 different leaders.
Reddick Reflects on Ending a Tough Winless Year
After an intense 2025 season without victories, Reddick expressed both relief and pride at fulfilling the expectations of 23XI Racing co-owners Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan, who brought him on to win championships.
Last year was really hard for all of us, hard for me,
Reddick said. “When you’re a Cup driver and you get to this level and drive for Michael Jordan, it’s expected you win every single year.
“For us to go on that drought, it made us look hard in the mirror, and I am really proud of everyone on our Chumba Casino Toyota Camry. Worked really hard in the offseason, and there were many points in this race where we weren’t making decisions we wanted to, but we just reset, and every opportunity we got to reset, we went back at it.”
He described the victory as surreal and personal, especially because of his son Beau’s encouragement before the race.
Just speechless. I didn’t know if I’d ever win this race. It’s surreal, honestly. The best part is my son (Beau) asked before this race, ‘Are you finally going to win this race?’ Something about today just felt right.
Late-Race Chaos Shakes Up the Finale
The closing laps of the Daytona 500 unfolded with rapid developments. Carson Hocevar of Spire Motorsports led as the white flag dropped but spun in Turn 1, taking both Erik Jones and Michael McDowell out of contention. Chase Elliott then took the lead and seemed poised to win his first Crown Jewel race.
Meanwhile, Reddick, following closely behind Herbst, gathered momentum. Herbst’s crucial block against Keselowski, though risky, halted Keselowski’s surge near the outside wall and ultimately secured Reddick’s victory.
I’m not really sure what happened with the first (Hocevar) wreck,
Elliott commented. “But we ended up kind of getting gifted the lead, and the 38 (Zane Smith) and I had got out by ourselves down the back. He had given me a good shove off into (Turn) 3 and then it was kind of just he and I, and at that point I just felt momentum shift, like there was going to be another run coming behind us there at some point.
Unfortunately, that was accurate, and then at that point in time, you’re just on defense. Man, that’s a really, really tough place to be, truthfully. Obviously looking back, you can run it through your mind a thousand times. Do you do something different? I feel like if I had thrown a double block on the 45 (Reddick), probably would have just crashed us at that point in time.
Keselowski and Others Reflect on the Finish
Brad Keselowski, competing while recovering from a broken right femur, expressed frustration over Herbst’s block that disrupted his race but acknowledged a respectable finish.
He detailed his efforts during the last restart and the disappointment of the crash caused by the incident.
Tore up the 9 (Elliott), tore up the 22 (Joey Logano), a bunch of cars that didn’t deserve to be wrecked, so that was a big bummer and really stupid. Still a decent day for us to come home with a top five and to be competitive and have a shot to win.
Massive Crash in Stage Two Alters the Race
Earlier in the race, a significant accident involving 20 cars occurred with seven laps remaining in the second stage. The collision was sparked when Justin Allgaier in the No. 40 Chevrolet and Denny Hamlin, a three-time Daytona 500 winner driving the No. 11 Toyota, made contact in the tri-oval.
Allgaier was leading the top line but left a narrow opening on his right. As Hamlin moved to fill the space, Allgaier’s car veered toward the wall and crossed in front of Hamlin, setting off a chain reaction that collected many drivers.
I got to the outside lane there, got to the front – got the outside lane,
Allgaier said. “And I really thought I had blocked enough of that top lane that the top line was just going to fall in behind.
And as soon as Denny went to that quarter-panel, it just sucked me in there. It’s a hundred percent my fault. That’s the frustrating part. I should have moved it up higher. But there are moments where you get a little bit complacent. You think you did everything right, but you didn’t check all the boxes. That’s what happened there.
The Importance of Riley Herbst’s Role in the Victory
Although Herbst was involved in the earlier wreck, his car sustained only minor damage and played a pivotal role in the race’s outcome by helping push Reddick to the win. Michael Jordan praised Herbst’s contribution after the race.
I thought Riley did an unbelievable job pushing at the end,
Jordan said. “That shows you what teamwork can really, really do. He doesn’t get enough credit. He won’t get enough credit. But we feel the love. We understand exactly what he did.
We hung in there all day. Great strategy by the team, and we gave ourselves a chance at the end. Look, I’m ecstatic. I don’t even know what to say. It feels like I won a championship, but until I get my ring, I won’t even know.
Race Highlights and Upcoming Events
Zane Smith took the first stage win, marking a milestone in his career, while Bubba Wallace emerged victorious in the second stage under caution due to the large crash. The lead exchanged hands 65 times throughout the race, involving a record 25 drivers.
Among the top finishers, Joey Logano secured third place, followed by Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski. Other notable finishes included Chris Buescher, Josh Berry, and Bubba Wallace rounding out the top ten. William Byron, who had aimed for a third straight Daytona 500 win, finished 12th, with pole winner Kyle Busch coming in 15th.
The NASCAR Cup Series will continue its season at Atlanta’s EchoPark Speedway with the Autotrader 400 next Sunday, featuring live coverage on FOX, HBO Max, PRN Radio, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
