Tyler Reddick Lets Slip of Son’s Misconception About ‘Shoe Guy’ Michael Jordan

As Tyler Reddick brought home his sixth career victory at Talladega, his boss was overjoyed. 23XI team owner Michael Jordan broke custom by attending the race, having been absent in his team’s last wins. And by the end of the finishing lap, Jordan and the No. 45 team were enraptured in celebrations.

Jordan chose to celebrate with his employee’s adorable son, Beau. Apparently, the child was a bit aware of Jordan’s iconic status. Now Reddick is on a mission to reverse that.

Tyler Reddick’s son associates Jordan with his brand

When Tyler Reddick emerged from a fiery last-lap wreck and stormed into Victory Lane, his boss was visibly elated. Michael Jordan gave high-fives to all the pit crew members, and soon scooped up Reddick’s son, Beau, to explain what his father had achieved. He heartily asked him, “We’re gonna celebrate?” And Beau matched the excitement: “Yeah!”

The video of this wholesome interaction enthralled the NASCAR community. It also reached the post-race press conference, as Bob Pockrass asked Tyler Reddick: “Does Beau think of Michael Jordan as a basketball player or the guy who has the shoe company?”

Then Reddick admitted that Beau is yet to explore the Michael Jordan universe. “Oooh. That’s a good question. I mean probably, with as young as he is, more is the guy with the shoe company, for sure.”

But then Tyler Reddick said he has a new quest at hand, in educating his son about the NBA legend’s career. “I’ve been doing a great job, and you just gave me some ideas of what to do in the future. I gotta play some highlights, some finals match-ups…But he knows that Michael is obviously…he sees more of the shoes, right? That’s some homework I can do. Let’s play some real-world games for him so that he can get a feel of how dominating he was in his prime.” 

Reddick concluded with a biased appreciation for the six-time NBA champion’s glittering career. “I love watching it. Watching the highlights, watching the games. I mean, it’s incredible, right? He’s the best to to do it. There’s a couple that have been that good for that long. But obviously, I’m gonna be partial with my boss.”

Michael Jordan left the basketball domain over two decades ago. But still, he keeps revisiting his past, as he did at Talladega.

Jordan saw a glimmer of himself in Reddick’s win

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After the race leaders crashed on the finishing lap, Tyler Reddick became the lucky dog. This reminded his boss, ‘His Airness’ about his basketball career. Many a time, Michael Jordan himself had landed an improbable shot to clinch a win for the Chicago Bulls.  He said: “To me, this is like an NBA playoff game. And for us to win a big race like this, it means so much to me. I’m all in. I love it.”

Even though the wild finish reminded him of his past, Jordan is committed to stock car racing. “It replaces a lot of the competitiveness that I had in basketball.” He added: “But I have no control, so I live vicariously through the drivers, crew chiefs and everybody.”

Michael Jordan’s dedication to stock cars has paid off, leading him to Victory Lane for the sixth time now with 23XI Racing.