Reddick dealt with a failed cool suit and a battery change before charging on for his fourth win of the year.
DARLINGTON, S.C. β Tyler Reddick passed Brad Keselowski late in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington to win his fourth race of the season, overcoming mechanical issues and a cool suit failure.
Reddick passed Keselowski with about 25 laps to go and charged on for the win. Keselowski led a race-high 142 laps and won the first two stages.
Reddick started on the pole but was forced to replace a battery midway through the race, sending him to the back of the pack. Reddick pushed his way back through the front while also dealing with a failing cool suit on the hot South Carolina day.
“We’ve been so close so many times [at Darlington],” Reddick said. “There’s something about this race track that’s so special.”
No major crashes happened, with only two non-stage break caution flags waving during the race. Several cars, though, faced issues on pit road that hurt their chances at the win.Β
Ryan Blaney, who finished third, had to race from the back after being penalized for pitting out of his pit box due to a loose lug nut. Bubba Wallace started second and spent time in the top five until a pit stop issue left him mid-pack. Wallace suffered damage in a crash shortly after the restart and finished 34th. Chris Buescher spent time in the lead but was nearly spun out by Reddick while attempting to enter pit road on the final stop, leaving him with a ninth-place finish.
Carson Hocevar and Austin Cindric rounded out the top five. Erik Jones, who was involved in one of the race’s two cautions, recovered to finish 10th. Kyle Larson ran in the top 10 for most of the race but suffered a mechanical issue in the final 10 laps, finishing 32nd. Joey Logano had an off day from the beginning and finished 33rd.
Tire wear proved vital in typical Darlington fashion, with just a few laps between pit stops creating massive advantages.Β
It’s Reddick’s fourth win in a season that’s just six races old. He opens the year with a dominant points lead. He sits 95 points ahead of second-place Blaney.
Wallace dropped to third, 120 points out of the lead, after Sunday’s race. Denny Hamlin, Chase Elliott, William Byron, Buescher, Christopher Bell, Keselowski, and Larson are the top 10 drivers in the points. Ty Gibbs, Ryan Preece, Hocevar, Daniel SuΓ‘rez, Shane van Gisbergen, and Logano are the remaining Chase drivers. Michael McDowell, who is level on points with Logano but below on the best-finish tiebreaker, is the first driver out of the Chase.
The NASCAR Cup Series is next in action at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday, March 29.