Tyler Reddick continued his dream season by overcoming numerous issues to capture his first Darlington victory, and his remarkable fourth win in the first six races of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season.
Winless in 2025, the determined Reddick overcame a succession of problems including a faulty alternator that ran his battery down just after he took the green flag from his pole position. With his battery failing and his cool suit circulating hot water, Reddick was forced to shut down most of his cooling system to keep his engine running.
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Reddick yielded his lead to a spirited run by veteran Brad Keselowski, whose fast RFK Racing No. 6 Ford Mustang was painted to honor late friend and team driver Greg Biffle.
Ultimately, Reddick was able to get a fresh battery on a pit stop, and despite the lack of a cool suit in the 90-degree South Carolina weather, he was able to run down Keselowski to deliver another victory in Sunday’s Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway.
After a lengthy victory burnout, an exhausted Reddick climbed from his No. 45 Michael Jordan-Denny Hamlin owned 23XI racer to celebrate and said, “I know never give up! I think it’s very fitting that when we finally get our first win here at Darlington that the ‘Lady in Black’ would test us like that.
“We’ve been so close so many times. I mean, Lap 1 we had the charging problem where the battery wasn’t charging at all’ All day long not running (cooling suit) fans. Sweat my tail off in the race car. Really worn out. But, I guess I don’t need as much of that cooling (suit) stuff that I normally have.”
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Reddick’s fourth win in 2026 places him among NASCAR legends Dale Earnhardt (1987) and Bill Elliott (1992), who were the only drivers NASCAR Cup Series history to win four of the first six races in a given season.
Runner-up Brad Keselowski won stages 1 and 2 and led a race-high 142 laps. The hard-driving veteran, still recovering from a broken leg, seemed poised to capture his first win in 2026 before Reddick overcame his many issues and passed him for the lead with less than 50 laps remaining.
Keselowski commented on his fine performance and credited Reddick by saying, “l think we got the most (points) out of this today…. second place, first-place loser, but that’s okay. Tyler drove a hell of a race, and he’s driving a rocket and making it count right now.”
Ryan Blaney overcame another loose wheel to pass an amazing 46 cars in his late charge through the competitive field to capture third place. Carson Hocevar and Austin Cindric rounded out top five finishers.
The NASCAR Cup Series teams head to the short track at Martinsville Speedway for next Sunday’s Cookout 400.
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