23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick became the first driver in NASCAR history to win the first three Cup Series races of the season. It’s already given him a massive advantage in points under The Chase championship format, and it might not be the only boost he gets this year.
On Monday’s episode of Actions Detrimental, Denny Hamlin said that he thinks Reddick will finish the regular season in the top three points leaders. It would set the table for 23XI Racing to have its best shot at an outright championship.
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“I don’t see a world where they finish outside the top three in the regular season..In this format, I don’t know that it would be a reach too early to say that he’s a lock for the top-three in the regular season.”
Denny Hamlin on where Tyler Reddick will finish in the NASCAR Cup Series regular season
Under NASCAR’s new The Chase championship format, the three drivers with the most points at the end of the regular season get bonus points. The regular-season champion will start the Chase with 2,100 points, a 25-point lead over the driver in second (2,075 points) and a 35-point advantage over the driver in third (2,065 points). Each subsequent seed will have a five-point drop from fourth to sixteenth.
Hamlin stated in February that he believes the NASCAR champion this year will come from one of the top-three points scorers in the regular season. It’s because they’ll have such a sizable lead over the rest of the field that, paired with their track record of driving that season, overcoming them would take an outright dominant run through the 10-race Chase.
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As the co-owner of 23XI Racing pointed out, it’s not just the fact that Reddick has a 70-point lead right now over the second-closest driver (Bubba Wallace, 116 points). It’s that Reddick is leading projected regular-season championship contenders like William Byron, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson and Hamlin by a wide margin after just three races.
“The contenders, in which you think would challenge them, are buried…They’re not the ones that are 60 points or 70 points back, it’s other people.
Denny Hamlin on Tyler Reddick’s points advantage over top NASCAR drivers
Entering the NASCAR schedule this weekend at Phoenix, Reddick leads Elliott by 72 points, Blaney by 86 points, Byron by 110 points, Larson by 113 points, and Hamlin by 126 points. He’s given other top Cup Series drivers minimal margin for error during the rest of the regular season, as they’ll need to vastly outgain Reddick in the races to come.
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Furthermore, Reddick and the No. 45 team now have the advantage of not needing to race for stage points. Instead, as Hamlin said, they can flip the stages and be in front of the field for the restart on the final stage. This flexibility in strategy can position them for even more wins, providing additional shots at the 15-point bonus for a victory.
Keep in mind that Reddick, who won the regular-season title in 2024, had the eighth-highest average finishing position last season (14.5) and the fifth-best mark (13.2) two seasons ago. So, even if he only gets one more win this season, his ability to consistently finish in the top 10 will allow him to better preserve his lead.
Related: NASCAR Points Leaders Today after Circuit of the Americas
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