Tyler Reddick became the first driver in NASCAR history to win the first three races of a season.
Reddick’s victory at the Circuit of the Americas was the third straight for 23XI Racing.
Shane van Gisbergen finished second, ending his streak of five consecutive road-course wins.
Tyler Reddick achieved a feat no one else ever has.
For the first time in the 77-year history of NASCAR, a driver has started the season with three straight victories. Reddick held off Shane van Gisbergen and Christopher Bell to win the Duramax Texas Grand Prix on Sunday, March 1, at Circuit of the Americas.
“It means the world,” Reddick said. “Yeah, it’s so fitting. We get going at the end there, and I’m leading and there’s SVG, the guy I’ve been trying to beat for a while now. Just to be able to outlast him there and hold on for the win is just incredible.”
Here are three takeaways:
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1. Tyler Reddick has 23XI Racing rolling
Reddick’s hot stretch continues.
Not only did he claim the first two checkered flags of the season, he posted the fastest qualifying time Saturday, starting Sunday on the pole.
He then led 58 of the 95 laps. Ryan Blaney (11) was the only other driver to lead more than eight. Reddick’s final margin over SVG was 3.94 seconds.
“Just trying to remember everything that I knew was going to be important there at the end and just tried to minimize the mistakes,” Reddick said. “Shane is — this is what he’s so good at. He does not make mistakes. I certainly made a couple and just doing everything I could to just manage the gap and just stay away from him, if you know what I mean. If I let him get close enough, it was going to be probably hard to hold him off.”
With Reddick’s win, 23XI Racing also became the first team to begin the season with three straight wins since Petty Enterprises in 1963, according to NASCAR Insights. 23XI won one race in 2025.
“He kept to his strategy, and man, the guys put together a great car,” co-owner Michael Jordan said.
2. Shane van Gisbergen falls just short of Jeff Gordon
Van Gisbergen entered looking for a piece of history himself.
With a win, he would’ve tied Jeff Gordon with six consecutive road-course victories. Gordon’s streak occurred between 1997 and 2000. SVG captured five in a row to close last season.
COTA was the one Cup Series road course he didn’t prevail at last year, though he won the O’Reilly Series event Saturday.
“Yeah, it’s weird to be disappointed with second, but this series is just at a high level,” SVG said. “I felt, OK, we got our SafetyCulture Chevy a lot better than yesterday, but just following Tyler, his driving was immaculate and his car was very good, too. I tried, but didn’t quite have enough. Still a great points day for the 97.”
He led two laps.
3. NASCAR schedule update: Phoenix up next
It’s no longer the host of the championship finale, but Phoenix Raceway still represents important stops during the Cup Series slate.
In 2026, the venue retained a playoff race in mid-October, and next week, it will mark the first appearance of the season at a bread-and-butter oval track. NASCAR opened with two superspeedways and a road course.
Bell and Blaney won the 2025 events at the one-mile track. The Straight Talk Wireless 500 will feature 312 laps, which add up to 500 kilometers. The race will air on FS1 at 3:30 p.m.