Tyler Reddick survives early wreck in Coke Zero Sugar 400 to clinch NASCAR playoff spot

DAYTONA BEACH — Tyler Reddick wrecked 18 laps into the Coke Zero Sugar 400 when he made contact with Todd Gilliland, but he rebounded to come back and earn a spot in the NASCAR playoffs.

Reddick slammed into the inside wall right before pit road Saturday, Aug. 23, at Daytona International Speedway. After spending an extended period of time getting his car fixed, Reddick was able to keep racing.

The damage was done, though, and his No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota wasn’t able to drive a full strength.

“I had no idea (if I was going to be able to finish). They kept working on it, but it was pretty torn up,” Reddick said. “It was early on. I really couldn’t even run in the draft. They had a plan. They worked on it and kept making it better. Obviously, we lost a lot of performance, but we had something we could somewhat race with.”

Nine laps after his collision, Reddick clinched a playoff spot when Alex Bowman, who was 29 points behind Reddick entering the race, crashed in a multi-car mess and couldn’t continue.

“We got bailed out,” Reddick said. “I feel like a lot of times this year when we needed a break to go our way, it hasn’t, and that was really important, for sure.”

This was Reddick’s second week in a row with a crash after Ty Gibbs clipped the back of his car at Richmond on Aug. 16. Reddick, who won Stage 1 in that race, finished in 34th, four laps behind, and put his playoff position in jeopardy after Bowman finished in second.

Reddick bounced back after his wreck at Daytona to finish 21st.

“I was very disappointed in myself. … Fortunately the (Bowman) crash that happened right after our incident is what pretty much saved us,” Reddick said. “I guess we didn’t get new winners, so maybe it wouldn’t. It’s tough to be in that spot nonetheless, and I made the night really hard for us.”

Reddick hasn’t had the season he probably hoped for. After finishing fourth in the Cup Series in 2024 and sixth in 2023, Reddick’s 15th-place regular-season finish is the lowest since he ranked 19th in 2020, his rookie season.

He hasn't won a race this season.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Tyler Reddick survives early Daytona crash to earn NASCAR playoff spot