Getty Tyler Reddick prepares for practice at Road America.
The driver of the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Camaro just provided an important answer. Tyler Reddick confirmed that he will be back with the organization for the 2023 Cup Series season.
Reddick made the comments prior to the Kwik Trip 250 at Road America. He explained that the 2023 season “is all taken care of” and that he will be back in the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro for his fourth consecutive full-time season. These comments follow some by team owner Richard Childress, who said on March 15 that he would have Reddick back for the 2023 season.
The expectation all along has been that Reddick would return to RCR for another Cup Series season, especially with the team holding an option on his contract. However, the organization had not made a formal announcement prior to the race weekend at Road America, which created questions about other teams potentially trying to woo the California native away.
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Reddick Remains Focused on His Future
GettyTyler Reddick will require a deal for the 2024 season.
Reddick provided confirmation about the 2023 season, but he also addressed some other uncertainties. The driver of the No. 8 clarified that he does not have a deal for 2024, which is a point of concern midway through his third full-time season.
“Well, it’s a tough thing,” Reddick said, transcript courtesy of NASCAR Media. “It is far down the line, but you have to be thinking. You gotta give as much as you can in the present and the now, but some of what happens in the present now is set up by what you do in the future. So, certainly thinking about that. And we’ll see. I got a little bit of time, I guess.”
Reddick has turned in some strong finishes during his third season at RCR. He has posted four top-five finishes, which is a new career-high, and he finished second overall at both Bristol Motor Speedway (dirt) and Darlington Raceway. However, he has encountered issues in recent weeks, which have dropped him below the playoff cutline.
Reddick has the goal of solidifying his position with RCR, and he remains in pursuit of his first career Cup Series win. Achieving the latter will take care of the former and erase a considerable amount of stress heading into a contract year.
Reddick Will Reach a Career Milestone in 2022
While Reddick continues to pursue his first career Cup Series win, as well as a new contract, he will prepare to hit a career milestone. He will make his 100th start at NASCAR’s top level after making his debut with two starts in 2019.
Reddick has not reached Victory Lane in his first 91 starts, and he has the goal of winning before hitting 100. failing to achieve this goal would not be the proverbial end of the world. There are numerous drivers that made well over 100 starts before securing their first win.
Ricky Craven, for example, made 174 Cup Series starts before winning his first race. He held off Dale Jarrett at Martinsville Speedway on October 15, 2001. It was his first of two career trips to Victory Lane.
Other examples of drivers to make more than 100 starts without winning are Ross Chastain (120), Joe Nemechek (180), James Hylton (187), AJ Allmendinger (213), Buddy Baker (216), Johnny Benson Jr. (226), Dave Marcis (227), Sterling Marlin (279), and Michael McDowell (358). Michael Waltrip made the most starts (463) before winning his first career race, the 2001 Daytona 500.