REDDICK SOLID IN FIRST CHAMPIONSHIP 4, FINISHES SIXTH
Christopher Bell leads Toyota with fifth-place finish
AVONDALE, Ariz. (November 10, 2024) – Tyler Reddick finished out his career-best season with a sixth-place finish at Phoenix Raceway in the NASCAR Championship race. With the finish, Reddick and 23XI Racing earned a career-best fourth-place finish in the final standings. The California-native also established career-highs in top-five and top-10 finishes this season.
Christopher Bell led Toyota with a fifth-place finish in the season finale. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver finished in the top-five in the final point standings for the third consecutive season and led the series overall with top-fives (15) and top-10’s (23).
Martin Truex Jr. closed out his final full-time NASCAR Cup Series season with back-to-back pole positions and ended Sunday with a 17th-place finish.
Toyota Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Phoenix Raceway
Race 36 of 36 – 312 Laps, 312 Miles
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Joey Logano*
2nd, Ryan Blaney*
3rd, William Bryon*
4th, Kyle Larson*
5th, CHRISTOPHER BELL
6th, TYLER REDDICK
7th, BUBBA WALLACE
11th, DENNY HAMLIN
17th, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
22nd, ERIK JONES
26th, JIMMIE JOHNSON
30th, JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
40th, TY GIBBS
*non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 Interstate Batteries – DEWALT Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 5th
Did you just not have a long run car?
“I felt like our DEWALT, Interstate Batteries Camry was fine, but we definitely lost the handle of it on that last run. I knew that I was getting a little bit worse compared to the competition as the race went. We needed to take a step and make it a little bit better, and it seemed like I got a little bit slower in the end.”
Can you talk about how on it your pit crew was today?
“They were amazing. This whole team is incredible, so I’m glad to be paired up with them for the years to come, and hopefully we will keep building on what we have.”
TYLER REDDICK, No. 45 The Beast Unleashed Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing
Finishing Position: 6th
What were you struggling with?
“I feel like we kept making our balance on The Beast Camry better and better all day – it was a bit telling in stage two here on that restart when we got to the 24 (William Bryon), 12 (Ryan Blaney) and the 22 (Joey Logano) – I wouldn’t say they were doing anything much different, but they were able to get away from us after a while. It was good year for us. Won in the right moments, just hoping for a little bit more of that magic today and wasn’t meant to be.”
MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 17th
What are your emotions after your last full-time race?
“Oh man. I wanted it to go better than that. We were pretty good early and then lost track position and then the track just continued to rubber up and get hotter. At least that’s what I felt like it was doing. I kept losing the grip. I kept losing more balance. I just losing track position. It just all magnifies with this thing. We got caught by the caution there and had to stay out on old tires and get the wave around and we couldn’t even race to try to go forward. It was just not a good day. Not a good day to end on. I’m proud of the effort of my team. At least we got to lead a few laps at the beginning.”
What does it mean to be such a respected driver and have people like Michael Jordan and Jeff Gordon come up after the race to congratulate you?
“Yeah, it means a lot to have the respect of guys like that and what they mean to the sport. Absolute legends, right? It makes me feel good that I’ve earned that respect over the years, and it means a lot. From here forward, I’m just going to go have some fun and do a little bit of racing here and there just for fun. Hopefully, it will be less stressful than days like today.”
TY GIBBS, No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 40th
What happened to take you out of the race early?
“It was definitely a big hit. I made contact with the wall, but I didn’t think it was necessarily too bad, and I went off into the dogleg. We’ve been really hard on the track there all week and I think I just caught it at a bad angle, and it just took off from me. I had no control there. It was a really, really big hit though.”
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 65 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.
Toyota directly employs nearly 64,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 47 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants. In 2025, Toyota’s plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 30 electrified options.
For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.
