Race Report: Tyler Reddick Earns First Cup Win at Road America
3 July 2022
By Bob Francis, Managing Editor
Go Full Throttle Racing News
ELKHART LAKE, WISCONSIN — Chase Elliott won the pole. Kyle Larson looked strong. But it was Tyler Reddick in the RCR № 8 Chevrolet ZL1 Camaro who used aggressive braking to get inside Elliott on lap 46 and once clear, drove away for his first NASCAR Cup Series win. Reddick is the fifth first-time winner of 2022 and the 13th different winner so far this year.
Chevy Domination
It was an all Chevy top 5 at the finish. Chase Elliott started on the pole and controlled the first two stages of the race; however, he did not collect any stage points as the Hendrick strategy was to pit just before the end of each stage to assure track position. The final 16 laps had Elliott desperately trying to get back to Reddicks rear bumper, but never got there. In the end the top 5 finishers were:
P1 Tyler Reddick, Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
P2 Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
P3 Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
P4 Ross Chastain, Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
P5 Daniel Suarez, Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Tyler Reddick in his own words:
“I definitely knew he was fast, but we could stay with him on the long run, which told me if we cycled through that last … that pit sequence, we’d be close or get around him (on pit road), (and) we’d have a great shot.
“Didn’t quite get around him. We were within reach. Thankfully, just waited for the right opportunity and was able to take advantage of it in Turn 6.”
Chase Elliott in his own words:
“First off, congrats to him,” Elliott said. “I know he’s been super close to that first win, and I’ve been down that road, and it can be a rocky one. I’m happy for those guys. They deserve it.
“For us, just proud of our NAPA team. I didn’t do a very good job there. I just let him stay close enough to pressure me there while we had decent tires and never could get enough of a gap. Made a couple mistakes. I was gaining a gap there a couple times and made a couple mistakes and let him get back close enough to get me out of sync, and then after that just started struggling.
“Obviously, it was super difficult to get to somebody to pass them. It was impressive he was able to get up there and capitalize on my mistakes. … I felt like we probably needed a little bit, but I think we were good enough to win, so those always hurt.”
The Updated Go Full Throttle Box Score
Manufacturer:
@TeamChevy = 11 wins,
@FordPerformance = 7,
@ToyotaRacing = 3
Team:
@TeamHendrick = 6,
@Team_Penske = 5,
@TeamTrackhouse = 4,
@JoeGibbsRacing = 3
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