23XI Racing is Looking to Shake Things Up After COTA Win

Hey, NASCAR Fans!

Tyler Reddick just can’t seem to get anything wrong right now. Coming into the COTA race weekend, the hype was about SVG and talks about his 6th consecutive road course win. But when the checkered flag waved, it was Reddick who clinched a historic win.

He became the first Cup driver to win the opening three races of a season. However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing for the driver of the No. 45 Camry, especially with SVG on his tail toward the end.

Stage 1: With leaders flipping the stage for their pit cycles, Ross Chastain stayed out to grab some good points for the stage win.

Stage 2: A chaotic restart, followed by another pit strategy by the likes of Reddick and Ryan Blaney, allowed Ty Gibbs to win the second stage.

Stage 3: A late caution and SVG’s charge up front set up a thrilling contest, but Reddick once again didn’t make a single mistake to bag his third win of the 2026 season.

There were signs of Reddick’s potential at COTA with his qualifying run. Despite being pitted against SVG, Connor Zilisch, Christopher Bell, and Michael McDowell, he grabbed the pole and sure made the most of his track position. He missed out on the stage wins, but leading a race-high 58 laps tells us that it was all part of the plan.

It is worth noting that both Ryan Blaney and SVG tried their best to topple the No. 45 car from the lead. But Reddick was just too good in his execution, be it saving the tires, tackling the esses, and then having the momentum on the front straightaway until Turn 1. The Kiwi driver did get close to the back bumper of the leader, but every time, Reddick found a millisecond to keep the distance between him and the chasing cars.

“We did not like getting beat like that at road courses. It's one race, but it was so important, so fitting that we were able to get three in a row and make history,” Reddick said in the post-race interview. With this win, he has opened up an 80-point gap over his teammate Bubba Wallace in the standings.

The man himself, MJ, who knows the feeling of winning three titles in a row, was just elated and proud of his driver. But what stood out the most were his comments about a potential change; it was as if MJ challenged the top three powerhouse teams (JGR, HMS, Penske). Here, listen to MJ’s post-race interview where he spoke his mind after another triumphant 23XI victory.

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After full-throttle racing at tracks like Daytona and Atlanta, the shifts and turns of COTA aren’t a smooth transition for the drivers. Moreover, the weather is another challenge that they have to deal with while fending off their rivals. We saw the ill effects of these daunting racing conditions, especially with Alex Bowman, A.J. Allmendinger, and Kyle Larson.

HMS driver Alex Bowman found it extremely difficult to finish the race and radioed his team about the discomfort after completing 70 of the 95 laps. He brought the car behind the wall and was relieved by Myatt Snider. He was feeling the pain, and with the radio message, “I don’t know if I’m going to make it,” it was clear that HMS needed to swap drivers.

Bowman’s teammate, Kyle Larson, had his own challenges. With the temperatures in the mid-80s in Austin, a cool suit failure is the last thing a driver needs at a track like COTA. But unfortunately, that is exactly what Larson had to deal with. He got the ice packs and cold drinks whenever he made it to pit road. But there was a funny side to this ordeal that you can watch via this in-car video footage.

However, there was another driver who bore the brunt of the Texas heat. A.J. Allmendinger finished the race inside the top 10 but was seen being stretchered off to the infield center. Like Larson, his cool suit also failed, and the driver had to brave the race to get a decent finish. The good news was that he was conscious and in control and was quickly released from the care center.

After two superspeedway races, the Cup Series returned to COTA for yet another entertaining race. And just like last week, we received a bunch of picks that you guys submitted before the start of the race.

Surprisingly, we had to resort to the tiebreaker again, as the final results were too close to call.

This week’s ultimate bragging rights go to: Seth!

You take home a $25 Amazon gift card, while other notable finishers also deserve a spot on our weekly leaderboard.

Do not lose hope yet if you didn’t make it to the leaderboards. Remember, this is going to be a season-long marathon, so make sure you come prepared with your picks next week.

Shane van Gisbergen: Losing a race has to be one of the worst feelings ever, and SVG had to go through it at COTA. Yet even in the moment of despair, the Kiwi driver appreciated his rival and accepted that he needed to come better prepared next time at this track.

“We lacked a little bit of turn and a little bit of drive. Tyler (Reddick, race winner) was just amazing. The way he was driving was really good, and his car was good,” SVG said in an interview.

Ty Gibbs: This past week in particular has been tough on Ty, with him being mentioned in the lawsuit and questions raised about the culture at JGR. But he did his talking on the racetrack and bagged a P4 finish, right behind his teammate Christopher Bell.

“It was really great. I had a great Toyota Camry. They helped me out so much today. Had a lot of fun, and we passed a lot of cars, obviously,” Ty said after the race. From being at the tail end in points to snagging a stage win along with a top-five finish, this was a good race for the entire No. 54 team.

Connor Zilisch: It was an unfortunate outing for the young star driver at COTA. Having climbed his way up front, Zilisch was caught in a melee on the Turn 1 exit, and he found himself at the back of the pack. Yet, despite the event, he managed to gather himself and was running the best lap times in the final stage, eventually finishing the race 14th.

“It was good to drive up through the field again. As a race car driver, I’m not satisfied, but I proved that I could do it,” Zilisch said after the race. There’s more interaction from one of your favorite drivers; catch the entire post-race interviews here.

In a Desperate Spot, HMS Took a Major Risk With Larson’s Car →

Hocevar Takes a Humbling Pill in Response to King Petty’s Surprising Dale Sr Comparison →

Chase Elliott Finds Similarities Between Playoffs and the Chase →

Michael Jordan Publicly Challenges the Old Guard After the COTA Triumph →

Jimmie Johnson Recalls Scary Mexico Adventure That Almost Forced Him to Quit Racing →

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