Two races remain in the Round of 8, providing two more opportunities for playoff drivers to reach the Championship 4. For Tyler Reddick, however, Homestead-Miami Speedway could be the track that makes or breaks his playoff run.
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The 23XI Racing driver fell to 30 points below the elimination line last weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after a 35th-place finish. He won the race's opening stage but crashed and flipped early in the second stage. He only scored 12 points.
"We had a really, really fast Jordan Brand Toyota Camry, probably would have been in the mix all race long, but we will go to Homestead — a place where I have had to get it done before and go for it there," Reddick said after exiting the infield care center.
Why is Homestead so pivotal for Reddick? The simple answer is that it's a track where he has performed well in the past. It's now his best remaining opportunity to lock up a spot in the Championship 4.
Reddick has four Cup starts at the Florida track — three with Richard Childress Racing and one with 23XI Racing. He finished fourth and second in his first two starts and then 35th in his third due to a crash in the final stage.
The California native delivered another top-five finish last season as he fought to keep his championship dreams alive. He finished third and scored 42 points, but it was fellow playoff driver Christopher Bell who won his way into the Championship 4.
The consistency at Homestead continues with Reddick's four Xfinity starts. He finished fourth, first, and first in his first three Homestead starts while winning two Xfinity titles. He finished second in his fourth start, but his car failed post-race inspection. The stat sheets now show a 40th-place finish.
Now compare those numbers to Martinsville Speedway, the track that hosts the Round of 8 elimination race.
Reddick has nine starts at the historic short track with only two top-10 finishes. One of these was a seventh-place finish during this season's spring race. The other was an eighth-place finish in the 2021 spring race.
He has finished 18th or worse in five of the last six Cup races at Martinsville, including last season's elimination race. Reddick needed a big performance to reach the Championship 4, but he started 19th after spinning in qualifying. He then fell two laps down during the playoff race and crossed the line 26th. Meanwhile, eventual champion Ryan Blaney won his way into the Phoenix finale.
Winning at Homestead next Sunday would remove Martinsville from the equation. Reddick and the No. 45 team would be able to just focus on Phoenix instead of stressing about the looming short track race.
Of course, winning is not a requirement. If Reddick can go out and score another 40-ish points at Homestead, he could put himself in position to point his way into the Championship 4. This would just be a taller task considering that he would have to deliver a clean race at Martinsville, score points, and hope that other playoff drivers encounter adversity.
