Reddick Achieves Historic Three-Peat, Echoing Jordan's Dominance

Tyler Reddick has etched his name in NASCAR history, achieving a remarkable three consecutive victories to kick off the 2026 season. The driver of the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota secured his latest triumph at the Circuit of the Americas, a feat that has drawn comparisons to the legendary "three-peats" of basketball icon Michael Jordan. Jordan, a co-owner of 23XI Racing, reportedly reminded Reddick of his own penchant for consecutive championships before the race, setting the stage for Reddick to deliver.

The remarkable streak began with a win at Daytona International Speedway in the prestigious Daytona 500, followed by a victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The Circuit of the Americas win, a road course, showcases Reddick’s versatility and adaptability across different track styles, a testament to his growing prowess in the NASCAR Cup Series.

"Yeah, he reminded me early this week (that) he does things in threes," Reddick said of Jordan’s pre-race conversation. "He expected no less today. I was really glad to be able to live up to the standards that he has for us and be able to deliver three in a row. That was really cool to share that moment with him."

Reddick’s performance is particularly striking given the competitive nature of the current NASCAR Cup Series season. His three wins have come on a superspeedway, a super-intermediate track, and a road course, highlighting his ability to excel in diverse racing environments. This broad success has left his team owner and fellow driver, Denny Hamlin, in awe.

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"It’s unbelievable," Hamlin commented. "I’m not going to see it again in my lifetime, someone to go out there and win three races in a row to start the season. Yeah, what a dream start for those guys. All kinds of – got Atlanta and Daytona and here. It’s just different tracks. It’s not necessarily one type." Hamlin further elaborated on the difficulty of these consecutive wins, noting, "Atlanta is quite a bit different than Daytona in how you drive there, so it’s just getting it done in all kinds of different ways."

The narrative at COTA was further amplified by Reddick’s duel with Supercars champion Shane Van Gisbergen, driving for Trackhouse Racing. Van Gisbergen entered the race with a formidable record on road courses, aiming for his sixth consecutive victory on such circuits, a streak that would have tied him with NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon. Reddick, however, managed to overcome Van Gisbergen in a hard-fought battle, demonstrating clutch performance under pressure.

"This is pretty crazy… I think it’s so fitting that it had to happen coming into here, a place where I got my first pole years ago, a place that, road course wise, is a great fit for me," Reddick reflected on the significance of the win. "But I just had a feeling no matter where Shane was going to start, Connor, some of those guys, even Blaney was starting towards the front, I just had a feeling at the end there I was going to see Shane at some point. Obviously, he blew my doors off at the beginning of the race but that restart played out perfectly for him to slot into second. I’m like, ‘of course there he is; I’m going to have to find a way to hold him off.’"

Reddick acknowledged the difficulty of achieving success in today’s Cup Series, particularly the challenging nature of winning both the Daytona 500 and surviving the Atlanta Motor Speedway race. "And in this day and age of Cup racing, the Daytona 500 is so hard to win. It’s so hard to survive at EchoPark Speedway, and we were able to do that. And to be able to hold off Shane at the end of that race to make it three in a row, yeah, it seems just very fitting that we had to go through the hurdles we did, especially these last two weeks, to pull this off."

The impressive run by Reddick also highlights the strategic success of 23XI Racing. Michael Jordan, speaking on the FOX broadcast, deferred much of the credit to Hamlin, describing himself as simply the "money man" behind the operation. Hamlin, a successful driver himself and a key figure in the inception of 23XI Racing, has been instrumental in building the team’s infrastructure and driver lineup.

"I’m proud of the team that we’ve put together," Jordan stated. "Denny I’m pretty sure is the same way. He feels the same way I do. I think a lot of credit goes to him because I think he’s the mastermind behind finding Tyler and putting together Billy Scott." Jordan continued, "Look, I just put up the money. I’m just a competitor. But I think Denny has done an unbelievable job in terms of helping build this team, and I think the team has done a good job of taking on leadership and going out and winning. That’s what it’s about, winning."

Hamlin elaborated on the "perfect partnership" with Jordan, emphasizing the autonomy he has been granted to manage the team. Despite past challenges, including moments where Hamlin considered buying Jordan out, their collaboration has yielded significant results. Hamlin’s vision for building a team from the ground up has materialized into a championship contender.

"When I started kicking around trying to find a race team that would let me buy in, none of them were going to give me the control that I wanted," Hamlin explained. "I don’t know what the word is for that, but I wanted to make sure if it failed, it was because of something I did, not someone else." He added, "When the stars aligned and we were able to start this and I was able to get him as a partner, he was – I was just so appreciative of the fact that he says, okay, here’s my percent, here’s your percent, but you’re going to have to build it. You’re going to have to do the work. You’re the boots on the ground. That was what I wanted. Where I get the gratification is from building something from scratch." Hamlin recalled the team’s humble beginnings: "Again, this team had, like, three employees working out of Mike Wheeler’s garage. There was nothing. We had zero. We didn’t buy a team, didn’t do anything. Just built it. This is what we’re doing. It’s pretty amazing."

With this historic win, Reddick now holds a significant points lead in the standings. While the playoff system resets points for the championship chase, the regular-season champion earns a crucial 25-point advantage heading into the final ten races. Reddick’s consistent performance and focus on accumulating points throughout the season have positioned him as a formidable contender.

"We’ll just manage it lap after lap, corner after corner," Reddick stated regarding his approach to maintaining his lead. "Certainly, yeah, like as we race, I’ll just have to be mindful, understand what I’m racing for in those moments, is it worth the risk or is it not." He added, "But certainly I think to an extent, if we just continue to bring really fast race cars, we won’t have to put ourselves in tricky spots in the race. We’re able to kind of race a little bit smarter."

Reddick also expressed his enjoyment of the strategic battles for points, recalling his successful pursuit of the regular-season championship in 2024. "For me, I really enjoyed racing for points in 2024 when we had that battle come down to the end at Darlington with Larson to win the regular season championship then. For me, I enjoy this. I know it’s ironic I’m saying that with a 70-point lead, but just to be able to execute in the first two races that are just hard to have clean days, to get the points that we did there, and then come in here and be able to grab stage points in Stage 2 and then obviously win the race is real special."

The team’s next challenge will be at short tracks, an area Reddick identified as having room for improvement. However, with the momentum of three consecutive wins and the continued support of 23XI Racing, Reddick appears poised to challenge for the championship in the upcoming races.