NASCAR star Tyler Reddick recreates iconic Michael Jordan photo after COTA victory

NASCAR star Tyler Reddick has recreated an iconic image of his 23XI Racing team owner Michael Jordan after yet another victory this weekend.

The original picture was taken immediately after Game 6 of the 1993 NBA Finals, with Jordan holding a game ball and holding up three fingers after John Paxson's dramatic late shot secured a 4-2 series win and the Chicago Bulls' third straight title.

Reddick's Sunday was a little less dramatic but no less perfect, holding off road course master Shane van Gisbergen to take victory at COTA and become the first Cup Series driver in history to win the first three races of any season.

Reddick posted a picture on social media after the race, holding his COTA trophy and holding up the same three fingers of Jordan – with the '93 Finals picture alongside it to ensure there was no room for doubt about who he was emulating.

NASCAR RESULTS: Tyler Reddick makes history with flawless COTA performance

Reddick: MJ reminded me he does things in threes

In his post-race press conference, Reddick admitted: "Yeah, he reminded me early this week, he does things in threes. He expected no less today. I was really glad to be able to live up to the standards that he has for us and be able to deliver three in a row. That was really cool to share that moment with him."

Jordan famously won his six NBA titles in a pair of three-peats either side of briefly retiring to try to crack MLB, winning Finals MVP in all six of those triumphs – although none of his five regular season MVP awards came in a set of three.

Speaking immediately after getting out of his car after securing the new NASCAR record, Reddick said: "It means the world. Yeah, it’s so fitting. We get going at the end there and I’m leading and there’s SVG, the guy I’ve been trying to beat for a while now. Just to be able to out last him there and hold on for the win is just incredible.

"Just really proud of this Chumba Casino Toyota Camry, everyone at 23XI. We worked really hard. We did not like getting beat like that at road courses. It’s one race, but it was so important, so fitting that we were able to get three in a row and make history."