Earlier this week, a video of Michael Jordan and Tyler Reddick's six-year-old son celebrating at the Daytona 500 surfaced online. Almost immediately, it went viral. The video shows the former NBA star repeatedly pinching the back of the child's shirt.
Many viewers feel like the interaction was inappropriate and that Jordan should have kept his hands to himself. Others have come to his defense, arguing that it was simply a playful moment between the athlete and a child he knows well. At the time of writing, Jordan has not publicly addressed the viral video.
It looks like Reddick has opted to keep quiet about it for the time being, too, as evidenced by his recent chat with TMZ Sports. Today (February 17), the outlet asked him to speak on the controversy, but his rep quickly interjected. “We’re not going to talk about that,” the rep stated.
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Michael Jordan Reacts To Daytona 500 Win
Before the controversy started gaining momentum, Jordan seemed elated about Reddick's big win, making it clear that it meant a lot to him. Jordan launched 23XI Racing with Denny Hamlin in 2020.
“I can’t even believe it. It was so gratifying,” he told Fox Sports after the race. “We had four guys that were really fighting, helping each other out. You never know how these races are going to end. You just try to survive."
“I thought Riley did an unbelievable job pushing at the end," he continued. "That shows you what teamwork can really, really do. He doesn’t get enough credit. He won’t get enough credit. But we feel the love. We understand exactly what he did. We hung in there all day. Great strategy by the team, and we gave ourselves a chance at the end. Look, I’m ecstatic. I don’t even know what to say. It feels like I won a championship, but until I get my ring, I won’t even know.”
