HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Michael Jordan won a championship in Phoenix in 1993. Tyler Reddick ensured that his car owner will have a chance to win another title there this year.
Reddick went high and overtook Ryan Blaney on the final turn to win at Homestead-Miami on Sunday to secure a spot in NASCAR's winner-take-all finale in Arizona in two weeks. Reddick led 98 of the 267 laps, the last of them the one that mattered most.
«The little kid drove his ass off,» said Jordan, whose 1993 title — the third of six NBA titles with the Chicago Bulls — came in Phoenix against the Suns. «I'm proud of him.… He just let go and he just went for it. I'm glad. I'm glad. We needed it.»
Reddick loves the Homestead track, and his favorite part of the place is turns 3 and 4 — the last two turns. He might like them even more now, since that was the stretch of track that got him a title shot in a thrilling finish.
«Took a risk and it paid off,» Reddick said. «I don't know what else really to say.… When the moment's right, you can do some pretty crazy stuff over there.»
Reddick's move at the end was the 33rd lead change of the day, a Homestead record. Blaney was second and Denny Hamlin — a part-owner of Reddick's car was third. Playoff drivers took the top six spots, with Christopher Bell fourth, Chase Elliott fifth and William Byron sixth.
Reddick — the regular-season champion and the driver who started from the pole on Sunday, a week after he went upside down in Las Vegas — and Joey Logano now are assured two of the four spots in NASCAR's final four at Phoenix.
«He has an abundance of talent,» Dave Rogers, the performance director for 23XI Racing, said about Reddick. «He's determined to win. He puts the work in.»
Reddick was third behind Blaney and
Read more on espn.com
espn.com
