Being NASCAR’s shortest track, the Virginian speedway flaunts a close and action-packed racing along two drag strips joined by hairpin shaped corners. Thanks to its unique shape, strategy and luck often seem to win over brute speed here. So much so, that 23XI Racing‘s sole survivor in the round of 8 got ousted from the contention and with that, Michael Jordan’s Championship hopes faded away.

This was Bubba Wallace‘s first time qualifying for the playoffs, but for Tyler Reddick, it was the 3rd year in the rumble. Despite having a good practice on Saturday, Reddick didn’t quite find the momentum translated into a fast show throughout the 500 lap-long race at Martinsville. Moments after the race, Michael Jordan’s driver shed light on his issues running on the “Paperclip”.

Tyler Reddick chuckled, says he needed all of it to win

With the advent of the next-gen cars, short track racing has been a pain for every driver out there. Mostly because it’s been a game of following the leader. Not because the cars lack speed, but just because passing is extremely difficult on the narrow straightways. But that’s not all.

There are no multiple grooves at Martinsville Speedway. Hence, clearing someone by riding high or low is not really an option. Only aero and drivetrain become the determinants of who grabs the lead and who falls back into the traffic. On top of that, with the addition of the 5th gear in the stock cars, a driver can easily downshift and make up for any momentum that he had lost owing to a mistake. So, taking advantage of someone else’s mistake doesn’t work out either.

Tyler Reddick had a fast car in practice for sure, but the tables turned during the qualifying laps. The #45 Toyota star spun in turn 4 in the first round, pushing him back to 19th in the starting grid. That left the team with a lot to make up for in the Xfinity 500. But unfortunately, it didn’t work out as Reddick conveyed to Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports moments after the race.

Pockrass was curious about what more Reddick needed to seal the deal. Reddick had a 10-point deficit to close and then perhaps grab the checkered flag in a must-win situation like this. But his mere car wouldn’t listen to him. “To be honest with you, handling wasn’t great,” exclaimed Reddick, adding, “track position wasn’t there for us, but man, it’s tough.”

“We ran so good here in Spring, really felt good about coming back…the cars just didn’t look their normal selves in the short track today, so we just struggled,” he added with regret resonating from his voice.

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It’s quite unfortunate to see the Championship shot for this fairly new Cup Series team getting ruined due to the lack of control. Are the new tires to blame for his disappointing 26th place finish? One can only wonder.

Tyler Reddick wasn’t too happy about the new tires

The two-time Xfinity Series champion had predicted that although the new tire change prior to Martinsville would give more options to the drivers, there wouldn’t be any significant advantage of the thicker treaded tires. The previous generation of cars had a narrow tire gauge and hence, it failed to dissipate heat that the tire gathered due to the high-speed friction against the asphalt. And it resulted in more frequent wearing of tires.

But with the new tire set-up at Martinsville, the 18-inch tire is wider, has a wider grip, can carry more load and dissipates heat evenly. After testing it out at Richmond, the officials felt like it would lay off more rubber on the track and hence give an increased groove advantage to the competitors.

But Tyler Reddick wasn’t too convinced. According to the 27-year-old California resident, the tires were laying lesser rubber than expected. In a post-qualifying interview, Reddick admitted, “Everyone thinks it’s gonna lay more rubber…it doesn’t look like the tire has more fall off, apparently less. So that wasn’t exactly ideal.”

However, more rubber getting laid on the track would give an opportunity for the drivers to explore more options of riding the groove and perhaps, that was good. Alas, for Reddick, none of it bore fruit. Hopefully, this talented driver shakes off his year’s playoff woes as soon as possible and braces himself up for an even stronger season.

Read more: Michael Jordan’s $150-Million Team’s Respect Goes Out the Door as Tyler Reddick’s 4-F Bombshell Gets Fans’ Full Support