Winning multiple races and winning a championship require ‌distinct effort and skill. This is something that the No. 45 team is realizing at this point in the season. 111 points down from the leader, Kyle Larson in the Chase, Tyler Reddick had the opportunity to turn the corner for good, but in the end he had to settle for a P3 finish.

After an 18th-place finish in Bristol and an 11th-place finish at Kansas, a P3 is surely a big boost for the #45 team. Yet, despite the positive day, Reddick couldn’t help but express his frustration with his team.

“We gained 5 points; what to do? We got to capitalize when we have Toyota Camry as fast as this, we got to win those races and the key to that is being clean and executing it and we haven’t done that in a very long time,” Reddick said in the post-race interview.

The No. 45 Camry had been dealing with alternator issues. After ‌Stage 1, they had to replace the battery; as a result, they lost the track position, forcing Reddick to weave his way through the traffic. He managed to do that well, but on the final pit stop, his pit crew put him at a disadvantage again.

Coming in to get fresh tires and fuel for the final time in the race, Reddick suffered an 18-second pit stop, which resulted in lost track position. Yet despite the challenges, the driver of the No. 45 Toyota Camry fought his way back and became a factor late in the race.

He chased down his teammate, Bubba Wallace, and was on the bumper of the No. 5 car. The final lap of the race was a thriller. Chase Briscoe defended with everything he had against Larson, whereas Reddick was looking for an opening. On the final corner, Larson tried to pull off a big move on the high lane, but he lost his balance and crashed into the wall, leaving Reddick in a tough spot.

Reddick wasn’t able to steer clear as the No. 5 car washed down the banking, and he spun across the grass. Fortunately, he crossed the start-finish line while he was sliding down the grass and onto the pit road. But it wasn’t the result he was looking for. Briscoe won the race and jumped two spots to sixth place after his win. Meanwhile, Reddick could only cut the points deficit to 106 points.

Not ideal when points leader Larson had a P2 finish. That 55-point jump that comes along with a win is a target Reddick was aiming for, but once again mechanical gremlins and pit road mistakes pegged him back. This Vegas race was a repeat of Kansas, where Reddick suffered a slow pit stop late in the race despite finding his way back up front.

“I mean, running [11th] on an intermediate race track isn’t really anything we should be proud of, honestly. We got big problems. We’ve just got to figure our own s*** out right now and just not even be worried about that,” he said after the Kansas race.

The No. 45 car had the speed to beat Larson and Briscoe, but Reddick never got the chance to battle for the lead due to pit road fumbles and mechanical issues. Briscoe, with 84 points out, will still feel he has a shot at the title, and that is because he bagged the win. Now it will take a miracle for Reddick and his team to stay in the title race, but a lot can still happen in the upcoming five races.