Tyler Reddick Wins at Talladega as Chaos Unfolds behind Him
On Sunday, Michael McDowell drove the best race of his life, starting from the pole position and leading the most laps in the Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. But as is often the case at superspeedways, the fairytale race ended on the final lap. McDowell was racing Tyler Reddick, one of the few Toyotas still in the race, when the two raised the white flag. Reddick led at the start/finish, but McDowell regained the lead at the first corner. Over the next two miles, the racing line continued to waver as riders joined their teammates and dropped out seeing an opportunity in another lane. McDowell’s lead was in part due to Brad Keselowski backing him up, while Reddick tried to get back to Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr.
It appeared that Keselowski was in the best position going into the final corner, but the Roush Fenway Racing driver went high before crashing, forcing McDowell to remain on defense until the final moment. Ta. McDowell’s low block finished a little late, forcing Keselowski to reverse it and the No. 34 car spun at the front of the field. The first three columns were able to descend and escape the carnage. “I didn’t want to jump to conclusions, I didn’t want to say anything stupid, because when I stepped back, I thought I was revealing,” McDowell told Bob Pokras. “I didn’t feel like it was a very slow block. “Obviously it was. My intention at this point is not to play ‘all or nothing.’ The objective was to stop the No. 6 car from advancing in the race. He had no intention of leaving the four of them and causing a melee. I gave it my all on the last lap, but I wish I could have done better and not wiped out half the field. ”
NASCAR raised the yellow flag as the car skidded and rolled off the track, allowing Keselowski and Reddick to fight to the end. Reddick successfully escaped McDowell and took his first superspeedway victory. Noah Gragson followed in third place, his best result in the NASCAR Cup Series.
One of the craziest moments of the final lap chaos occurred when Corey Lajoie, who was trapped on the side between Carson Josevar and the wall, slipped and crossed the finish line, finishing 18th.
Reddick was racing without his teammate and the majority of the Toyota drivers when a single-file collision after a strategy pit caused the retirement of four drivers. Erik Jones, who took the hardest hit, was released from the infield care center but returned during the race. He has since been transported to a nearby hospital. The only two that remained were Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Martin Truex Jr and Ty Gibbs, whom Reddick thanked for the help. “I have to give a lot of credit to Ty Gibbs and Martin Truex Jr,” Reddick told NASCAR on Fox after climbing onto the front stretch. “We were the only Toyotas left. They pushed me as hard as they could. Big shout out to Martin and Ty. Without that push, we can’t win this race.” Reddick said. The team, his family and team owner Michael Jordan were on hand to celebrate the driver’s return. The latter experienced a rollercoaster of emotions watching the final quarter of the final lap. Frontstretch.com captured Jordan’s reaction to the win in real time.
