Tyler Reddick’s 2025 season has been one of the toughest of his Cup Series career. The 23XI Racing driver showed plenty of speed in the No. 45 Toyota early in the year, but consistency proved to be the biggest challenge. But it’s the off-track tragedy that he’s facing with his son, Rookie, that’s added to his hardships.

Earlier in October this year, Reddick’s wife, Alexa, had explained that Rookie has a tumor that’s “choking” the renal vein & renal artery. It has enlarged his heart, and it’ll need the entire kidney removed. While Tyler was racing in Kansas, Rookie was fighting for his life. Thankfully, the surgery went fine, and Rookie came home. Ahead of the championship event, Reddick recently gave an update on his health.

Rookie’s road looks brighter

Tyler Reddick shared updates about his infant son’s health scare after surgery, offering his first detailed update at the Phoenix Raceway ahead of the championship event. “He’s a lot better. We still have some things to sort through. The surgery went with no complications, heart functions have been quickly returning to normal, just adjusting and understanding,” Reddick said while talking to the media at Phoenix.

What had happened was that his blood flow was being blocked due to the mass on his right kidney. It was making it tougher for the heart to pump and circulate the blood, eventually enlarging it. Alexa highlighted the seriousness of trusting your gut to detect such signs of distress among children.

But Reddick made it clear that while progress is promising, the road to full recovery remains open. “We gotta be careful with him only having one kidney so he has still got some other things to figure out. But mostly it seems like he’s going in the right direction, gaining weight, much happier mood, just happy and smiling all the time,” he said.

The family has shared updates indicating that Rookie has been able to leave some intensive care settings and is showing signs of improvement, though medical supervision remains important.

He acknowledged the intense pain his son endured and the emotional toll it has taken on the family: “He was in a lot pain for a long time and I am glad that a lot of those issues have been resolved but we still got some little things to work out.”

It had all started within a month after Rookie’s birth, when he started showing distress signs. This was missed in their multiple pediatrician visits. But thanks to Alexa’s “mom gut,” they took Rookie to Levine Children’s Hospital in Charlotte, where it was all discovered.

Throughout the ordeal, Reddick has balanced his on-track commitments, such as making a playoff run, while staying focused on his son’s health. He admitted during the Charlotte Roval weekend that he nearly skipped a race to be at his son’s side and called his wife, Alexa Reddick, “locked in” during the process.

The team at 23XI Racing and fellow drivers also offered support, making clear that Rookie’s health was their primary concern.

Meanwhile, on the professional front, there’s news about a NASCAR rule change for Reddick and his fellow Cup drivers.

Cup drivers gain more starts in lower-tier series

The sanctioning body announced Saturday that Cup stars get more races in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Craftsman Truck Series in 2026. Cup drivers with three-plus years of full-time experience in the premier series will be permitted to compete in a maximum of 10 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series races a season beginning in 2026.

That is an increase from five in past seasons. For Trucks, the maximum number is eight per season, which was also five so far.

Meghan Miley, NASCAR’s managing director of racing operations, explained the reason behind these changes, saying, “When we looked again this year, as we always do, we felt that potentially expanding the eligibility of both of those series could benefit both competition and marketing.”

That makes sense. Marketing will naturally follow wherever Cup stars go, and their presence will keep the lower-tier drivers on their toes to up their racing levels. This will increase the overall competitiveness in those series.

Some restrictions remain the same. For instance, the Cup drivers will still not be allowed to compete in the regular season finale and all playoff races in both the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Truck Series.

Additionally, NASCAR also announced that the minimum age in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series will move to 17 years at road courses and tracks measuring 1.25 miles or less. In the Truck Series, the minimum age will be 16 for all tracks 1.25 miles or longer.