Michael Jordan knows what it feels like when winning becomes the expectation and anything else starts looking like failure. That is why his latest visit to 23XI Racing mattered at a time when Tyler Reddick and the No. 45 team were trying to find their way out of a rough summer. Reddick has gone from five wins in the first nine races to a string of ordinary results, and suddenly the team that looked almost unbeatable early in 2026 was looking for answers. Jordan chose to spend a day at Airspeed with the people behind those results.
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Michael Jordan’s Billy Scott gave a positive and appreciative spin to the situation. It was shared via Sirius XM NASCAR radio on X.
“Fortunate for where we are in this company and who our owner is that, you know, having Michael Jordan himself fly in speed last week to hang out for a day and to get to talk to the individual groups.”
That was 23XI Racing crew chief Billy Scott explaining why Jordan’s visit meant so much. Jordan met with different parts of the organization instead of simply making a quick appearance and leaving.
Scott said Jordan talked about the setbacks he faced during his own career. That included championship seasons that still had plenty of problems along the way.
“And I think when he puts it in perspective that what he’s lived through and the adversity he’s had to overcome, kind of every step along the way, even in their successful championship seasons, I think that is a great reminder. Let’s everybody know that even the greatest have to overcome things. We were fortunate to have that access.”
That message is coming at an interesting point for Reddick. The No. 45 started 2026 like a team nobody wanted to face. Reddick won the Daytona 500, then followed it with others at Atlanta and Circuit of The Americas. He later added Darlington and Kansas, giving him five wins in the first nine races.
The run was historic. He became the first driver since Dale Earnhardt in 1987 to win five of the opening nine races. Then the results changed.
Over a nine-race stretch during the summer, Reddick’s average finish dropped to 24.2. He finished 36th at Iowa and 30th at North Wilkesboro. The 11th-place finish at the Cook Out 400 was better, but still nothing like the form that had made him an early championship favorite. The important part is that the problem has not simply been Reddick.
The No. 45 has shown flashes of speed, but the team has struggled to put together complete weekends. That is where Jordan’s message becomes useful. He has seen what happens when a team goes from chasing success to being expected to deliver it every weekend.
While, 23XI Racing and MJ are putting their trust behind the No. 45 team, Dale Jr is concerned about them, and he was baffled how this team went from winning a bunch to not be a factor in races.
Dale Jr left stunned over Reddick’s decline
There was a time when Tyler Reddick had a 100 points lead over Denny Hamlin to be the top seed entering the Chase. But after the summer months struggles, he isn’t amongst the favorites to dominate in the 10-race Chase. Rather the likes of Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe and Christopher Bell are now a part of that conversation.
But Reddick’s slump isn’t due because of lack of speed or talent, they have had bad luck. At San Diego, Reddick had a flat tire late in the race. At Sonoma, his power steering issue hampered his run, and at Chicagoland a piece of debris hit his car and his team had to change the radiator.
While the stat. sheet might show that Reddick is underperforming, in reality he’s been through the worst luck so far this season. And even Dale Jr was left baffled with this change in fortunes for the 23XI Racing driver. “Man, what in the hell is going on with him? … They have had the strangest luck here lately. It ain’t up, it’s all down. It’s wild.”
But the good thing is that the No. 45 team is where they want to be. They have enough points, a couple of races to gain momentum and then keep their best foot forward for the Chase. All it takes is one good race for a driver like Reddick, and he would be back among the favorites. But execution and clean races is what the No. 45 team will have to aim for heading into post season.