2027 Silly Season

Its interesting to me how often a professional athlete (in many sports) steps up their game in a "contract year. " Professional football being the biggest in my observation. Although I am not saying in Tyler's case that this is simply a matter within his sole control.
It is odd, but probably a bit harder in racing. Then again, I've seen some remarkable performances when big money was on the line. I still remember when Jeff Gordon won the Winston Million and roughed up Jeff Burton to win it. Burton said something to the effect that people don't do anything different in those situations. Probably why Gordon won the million, all those titles, and Burton did none of that.
 
Tyler Reddick, 23XI Racing close in on contract extension
By Jordan Bianchi, The Athletic, March 24, 2026
One other comment from Jordan Bianchi's article about Tyler Reddick really pissed me off...
Reddick has repaid 23XI’s faith in him, by showing similar faith in the team as it went through a bitter and contentious antitrust lawsuit that it and another team, Front Row Motorsports, filed against NASCAR.

Over the year-plus the sides fought, questions arose surrounding 23XI’s future. Amid this uncertainty, multiple teams began expressing interest in poaching Reddick. He rebuffed all overtures, though, instead preferring to stay loyal to the team.

So there you have it in black-and-white. While 23XI & FRM were waging war against the France family monopoly, a war to improve the charter terms to benefit all cup series race teams, multiple team owners showed their gratitude and solidarity by trying to swoop in and poach 23XI's star driver. F*cking disgusting in my opinion that those unnamed team owners chose to express their (lack of) gratitude and solidarity that way.

And major props to Reddick for being resolute in his loyalty to 23XI in the face of the massive uncertainties of 2025. Day by day, I'm becoming more of a fan of that driver, that team, and those owners (MJ and Hambone).
 
One other comment from Jordan Bianchi's article about Tyler Reddick really pissed me off...


So there you have it in black-and-white. While 23XI & FRM were waging war against the France family monopoly, a war to improve the charter terms to benefit all cup series race teams, multiple team owners showed their gratitude and solidarity by trying to swoop in and poach 23XI's star driver. F*cking disgusting in my opinion that those unnamed team owners chose to express their (lack of) gratitude and solidarity that way.

And major props to Reddick for being resolute in his loyalty to 23XI in the face of the massive uncertainties of 2025. Day by day, I'm becoming more of a fan of that driver, that team, and those owners (MJ and Hambone).
Didn't piss you off when Hambone poached Reddick from RCR though right?
 
While 23XI & FRM were waging war against the France family monopoly, a war to improve the charter terms to benefit all cup series race teams, multiple team owners showed their gratitude and solidarity by trying to swoop in and poach 23XI's star driver.
None of those other owners ask 23xi or FRM to take this on. Not all of them were in favor of having the anthill kicked. Don't expect gratitude for a self-imposed battle no one else asked them to fight.

So I can understand your being PO'ed, but I get frosted by people claiming their crusade is for my benefit when I didn't want the battle fought in the first place. I'm not saying that was 23FRM's motivation but that's how you're presenting it.
 
One other comment from Jordan Bianchi's article about Tyler Reddick really pissed me off...


So there you have it in black-and-white. While 23XI & FRM were waging war against the France family monopoly, a war to improve the charter terms to benefit all cup series race teams, multiple team owners showed their gratitude and solidarity by trying to swoop in and poach 23XI's star driver. F*cking disgusting in my opinion that those unnamed team owners chose to express their (lack of) gratitude and solidarity that way.

And major props to Reddick for being resolute in his loyalty to 23XI in the face of the massive uncertainties of 2025. Day by day, I'm becoming more of a fan of that driver, that team, and those owners (MJ and Hambone).
I doubt he was loyal to anyone besides his bank account.

I like Tyler, but if the paychecks stopped he would have jumped from that ship
 
I doubt he was loyal to anyone besides his bank account.

I like Tyler, but if the paychecks stopped he would have jumped from that ship
He jumped on one after he was poached by Hamlin....no honor among thieves. Pretty sure he would have done it again if the money was right.
 
Didn't piss you off when Hambone poached Reddick from RCR though right?
No, I wasn't chapped about that, but "poached" isn't the right word for that deal. That was just an impending free agent signing with another team for a better situation. I don't see any dishonor there, do you?

None of those other owners ask 23xi or FRM to take this on. Not all of them were in favor of having the anthill kicked. Don't expect gratitude for a self-imposed battle no one else asked them to fight.
I'm comfortable relying on the contemporaneous media reports and numerous garage insider reports that essentially all the owners wanted and felt they deserved a better deal, but caved due to obligations to sponsors plus the risk of losing the charters they did have. In other words, they felt entrenched and bullied so they settled. When 23XI & FRM didn't settle, those other teams were getting a free ride with substantial upside and negligible downside. Reports were that they were highly supportive of what MJ, Hamlin, and Jenkins were doing, without actually contributing anything to the effort. And every team owner gladly signed the revised charters that the Plaintiffs secured from Mr. France. To me, it's unseemly and underhanded to take advantage of 23XI's battlefield uncertainties, by trying to poach their star driver who was still under contract through 2026. YMMV.

If you have credible reports of team owners who "didn't want the battle fought in the first place" by 23XI & FRM, please share with us.

I doubt he was loyal to anyone besides his bank account.

I like Tyler, but if the paychecks stopped he would have jumped from that ship
Perhaps you should share your insight with the well-regarded journalist who just reported otherwise. BTW, 23XI guaranteed to all employees that the paychecks would continue through 2026. If the paychecks stopped, of course every employee would be looking around... I never said otherwise.
 
No, I wasn't chapped about that, but "poached" isn't the right word for that deal. That was just an impending free agent signing with another team for a better situation. I don't see any dishonor there, do you?
As a matter of fact I do, that is why I commented on your beautification of young Reddick and Hamlin. Hamlin came to Reddick before he had talks with Childress. I call that poaching. If you remember Reddick ran for Childress for almost a year and a half after after Hamlin signed him and the deal was made public.
That is what happened, you are free to candy coat it all you want.

While everyone understood the Childress organization being disappointed to lose what has been their best driver in 2022, the word choice was puzzling. The “timing of this announcement” sounded odd because RCR has an 18-month runway to find a replacement.
“The biggest surprise was when he came to us less than one hour before the announcement. I don’t think it showed any respect for his race team or everyone who got him where he is,” Childress said. “Less than one hour before the announcement? A lot of stuff swirls around an 18-month announcement.
 
I don't think you can really use loyalty to describe Tyler. He won a championship with JRM and to show his loyalty he jumped to RCR because it had a better path to a cup ride. Then when RCR rewarded him with a cup ride he once again showed his loyalty by jumping ship to 23XI.

Now I'm not saying thay he's a bad guy and that I wouldn't have done the same thing, but those aren't actions of what I'd consider loyalty.
 
I must have a learned different definition of Loyalty, because signing with another team with more than 12 months left on a deal with the team your currently driving for doesn’t sound very loyal to me.
 
Didn't piss you off when Hambone poached Reddick from RCR though right?
You mean after Poor Richard low balled Tyler?...and I think the point is that 23XI's work and risk benefitted the owners who repaid the favor by trying to bury them.
 
I must have a learned different definition of Loyalty, because signing with another team with more than 12 months left on a deal with the team your currently driving for doesn’t sound very loyal to me.
How about looking at loyalty from Poor Richard's perspective? You low ball your best driver? Betcha the numbers Tyler saw during that period of time were pretty impressive yet he didn't bite. The Felon has been handicapped by Cutie Pie for some time.
 
I don't think you can really use loyalty to describe Tyler. He won a championship with JRM and to show his loyalty he jumped to RCR because it had a better path to a cup ride. Then when RCR rewarded him with a cup ride he once again showed his loyalty by jumping ship to 23XI.

Now I'm not saying thay he's a bad guy and that I wouldn't have done the same thing, but those aren't actions of what I'd consider loyalty.
Loyalty works both ways.
 
As a matter of fact I do, that is why I commented on your beautification of young Reddick and Hamlin. Hamlin came to Reddick before he had talks with Childress. I call that poaching. If you remember Reddick ran for Childress for almost a year and a half after after Hamlin signed him and the deal was made public.
That is what happened, you are free to candy coat it all you want.

While everyone understood the Childress organization being disappointed to lose what has been their best driver in 2022, the word choice was puzzling. The “timing of this announcement” sounded odd because RCR has an 18-month runway to find a replacement.
“The biggest surprise was when he came to us less than one hour before the announcement. I don’t think it showed any respect for his race team or everyone who got him where he is,” Childress said. “Less than one hour before the announcement? A lot of stuff swirls around an 18-month announcement.
Sound bites. What went on before that one hour notice? I think Tyler got the "**** you" from Poor Richard, and Tyler finished with the "No, **** you," program.
 
I don't think you can really use loyalty to describe Tyler. He won a championship with JRM and to show his loyalty he jumped to RCR because it had a better path to a cup ride. Then when RCR rewarded him with a cup ride he once again showed his loyalty by jumping ship to 23XI.

Now I'm not saying thay he's a bad guy and that I wouldn't have done the same thing, but those aren't actions of what I'd consider loyalty.
Childress said it best. I'll add race teams plural. "I don’t think it showed any respect for his race team(s) or everyone who got him where he is,” Childress said.
 
It's business. Maybe it's just me but I think expectations of loyalty are naive at best, whether on the part of driver, owner, sponsor, or crewmember.
 
How about looking at loyalty from Poor Richard's perspective? You low ball your best driver? Betcha the numbers Tyler saw during that period of time were pretty impressive yet he didn't bite. The Felon has been handicapped by Cutie Pie for some time.
This is speculation, you and I have no idea what RC offered Tyler to stay. And I dont know who Cutie Pie is, or what the Felon has to do with my previous post. Im having trouble connecting the dots.
 
This is speculation, you and I have no idea what RC offered Tyler to stay. And I dont know who Cutie Pie is, or what the Felon has to do with my previous post. Im having trouble connecting the dots.
There is a window of time when negotiations are undertaken. 20 months ahead of time isn't it. That was when the jump ship was announced. No telling how long before that Hamlin was talking to Reddick. Those secret deals take time to put together. Pretty sure RCR wasn't offering Reddick anything yet 20 months or more before his contract was up.
 
This whole thing started when it was stated that other teams were trying to recruit Reddick while 23XI was in court, an unchartered team at the time, and nothing about the suit was settled. I could make the case that looking at Reddick's team hopping record and driving at present for an unchartered team AND it was written in his contract that all bets were off and he was a free agent unencumbered by contract because of that fact and free to seek a driving job elsewhere.

So who was recruiting who in that period of time. Reddick looking at a possible future of driving for an unchartered team, or other teams looking at a driver who is looking for another spot to hop too.
 
They hate the organization so they take anyone who did something against it as good.

Hamlin remains an unlikeable douche.
Still on this man? Why can't you accept that some people can still love NASCAR, but think they got what they deserved during that lawsuit. I have shown if I didn't love something anymore I don't watch(its why I'm not watching WWE anymore and only know what happens from social media). Now are they some who hate NASCAR, yeah probably. But lets not brush it up to everyone.
 
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