Tyler Reddick climbed into his No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota on Sunday afternoon at Kansas Speedway, knowing that the race ahead of him wouldn’t even come close to ranking as his toughest challenge of the week.
In the days leading up to the green flag in the Hollywood Casino 400, Reddick and his wife, Alexa, were facing an unthinkable situation: their four-month-old son, Rookie, had been admitted to the ICU at Levine’s Children’s Hospital in Charlotte, North Carolina, after showing signs of heart failure.
Reddick would attempt to escape the stressful situation back at home by slipping into his comfort zone, the seat of his race car.
However, the adversity in Sunday’s race started early with hiccups on pit road, which hampered what looked to have been a promising run. But Reddick showed resilience by rallying back through the field to score a hard-earned seventh-place finish.
Race Results: Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas
It was a result that reflects the 29-year-old racer’s tenacity, even if it wasn’t enough to move the needle regarding the driver’s ranking in the Playoff standings.
What the stat sheet doesn’t show, however, is the emotional weight Reddick carried on his shoulders and in his heart all weekend.
Tyler Reddick on his four-month old son Rookie being in the ICU undergoing tests after showing signs of heart failure: "It's difficult. … What my son Rookie is going through is serious. A tricky situation. More than anything, I'm just ready to get on a plane and go home." pic.twitter.com/7FArQ50fW0
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) September 28, 2025
“It’s difficult,” Reddick said of his four-month-old son being in the hospital in a post-race interview with FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass. “It’s not what you want for your kids. As a father, my first son, Beau, has hit his head, bruised himself up, and cut himself up. But yeah, what Rookie is going through is serious. A tricky situation. And more than anything, I’m just ready to get on a plane and go home.”
Alexa first revealed the news in a post on her personal Instagram profile over the weekend, where she asked for prayers and support as doctors worked to find answers.
View this post on Instagram
Rookie remains in the ICU undergoing testing, although Reddick indicated that the situation had stabilized enough for him and his wife to agree that he should race.
Had the situation not stabilized, Reddick likely would have skipped Sunday’s Playoff race at Kansas Speedway.
“Thankfully, he’s doing well enough, I don’t even know how you’d classify it, but I wouldn’t say it was off the table, depending on how things were going,” Reddick explained. “But thankfully, he’s doing well enough that [I] and my wife were on the same page about staying.”
Though Reddick finished seventh, he slipped further from the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff cutline. He now sits 29 points behind Joey Logano, the last driver above the bubble, heading into the Round of 12 elimination race this weekend at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval.
But for Reddick, the focus is understandably on his son, Rookie.
This week, racing was a backdrop. Reddick’s real victory this season may not be on the track, provided good news continues to trickle from the ICU and Rookie can fully recover from the ailment.
