Reddick and Wallace, 23XI Racing dominance in Darlington qualifying

Michael Jordan’s 23XI Racing Dominates Qualifying at Darlington

The NASCAR team co-owned by NBA legend Michael Jordan continues its strong start to the season in the Cup Series, securing the top two starting positions on Saturday at Darlington Raceway. Tyler Reddick, winner of the Daytona 500, secured the first position for Sunday’s 400-mile race with a lap at 169.152 mph on the 1.366-mile oval. The 23XI Racing driver earned his 13th pole position despite hitting the wall with his No. 45 Toyota, as he struggled with a new package that makes driving more difficult with greater power and less downforce.

I tried to take it easy and just overdid it with the accelerator. I knew I was in trouble a third of the way, so I had to hit the wall at that point.

Tyler Reddick

His teammate, Bubba Wallace, qualified second at 168.434 mph in his No. 23 Toyota for 23XI, marking the second front-row sweep for the team founded by Jordan and NASCAR star Denny Hamlin. Reddick and Wallace are also ranked 1-2 in the points standings after five races. That’s Reddick for you. He pushes it to the limit. That was a hell of a lap. I’m proud of the team’s efforts. We continue to build on the momentum from the first race until now, and Darlington is super difficult. This package is complicated. Wallace dedicated the lap to his newborn daughter, who was born on Thursday. Chase Elliott qualified third after his No. 9 Chevrolet failed inspection twice before the session, resulting in the loss of pit selection and the ejection of crew chief Matt Barndt. Kyle Larson and Brad Keselowski rounded out the top five in the standings. Chris Buescher qualified sixth, but his No. 17 Ford also failed inspection twice. The team lost its pit selection and crew chief Josh Sisco for the race.