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By Sonny Jones

Did Tyler Reddick win Sunday’s NASCAR Cup race or did he survive it? The driver of the No. 8 Chevrolet led 52 of the last 53 laps at Texas Motor Speedway to become the fourth driver without championship eligibility to win a playoff race.

The real story of the race, however, was fire and flats. Time after time tires came apart, sending cars careening into walls and and propelling Cody Ware’s car smashing into a pit road retaining wall. Talk about scary.

What made Reddick’s win all the more amazing is his tires held together. He went the final 65 laps on the same right side tires and the final 110 laps on the same left side tires. Some drivers were having a difficult time going more than 35 laps before having tire trouble.

Tire issues eliminated contenders Chase Elliott, Christopher Bell, Martin Truex Jr., Kevin Harvick, Chris Buescher, Kyle Busch and Alex Bowman. Elliott’s car caught fire as it rolled to a stop along the grass. Harrison Burton’s car was in flames in the pits while the crew was trying to change tires. The fires came a few weeks after Harvick’s car caught on fire following an accident.

I’m no mechanic nor engineer, but NASCAR needs to solve the issues with the numerous flat tires and the recent issue of a few cars catching fire. The constant cautions make for nearly unwatchable races and the fires are frightening. I can’t imagine what it must be like inside the car.

The next race is Sunday in Talladega where the “big one” is only a wiggle away. Grip your steering wheel tight and hang on. And hope tires stay inflated and fires stay away.

• The Carolina Panthers got their first win Sunday, beating New Orleans 22-14 to snap a 9-game losing streak dating back to last season. The offense is still woeful. Nice to get a victory, but a half dozen wins, maybe, seems about right for the season.

• Ho-hum. The Americans won another Presidents Cup against a watered-down International squad. The final was 17½ to 12½, which was closer than it should have been after the first two days of play at Charlotte’s Quail Hollow Country Club. Jordan Spieth was 5-0 to lead the USA, which won for the ninth straight time. The event would have been more interesting with a few LIV Tour players on the International team, but the LIV-PGA spat prevented that. It needs to be resolved.

MONDAY’S PICK TO CLICK

This is the night. Aaron Judge hits home run No. 61 to tie Roger Maris for the American League single-season record. The Yankees are away from the pressure-cooker of New York. A series in Toronto is just what the doctor ordered.

SUNDAY’S PICK: Kyle Larson led 256 laps and won last year at Texas Motor Speedway. It’s time for a playoff driver to win a Cup series race after going winless in the first round of the 3-race playoffs. Larson is a solid choice. RESULTS: Larson finished 9th and is fourth in the playoff standings.

TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

• 1981 — Kelvin Bryant of North Carolina rushes for 173 yards and scores four touchdowns in a 56-14 victory over Boston College, giving him 15 touchdowns over the last three games, an NCAA record.

WHAT TO WATCH TODAY

• MLB: NY Yankees at Toronto, 7 p.m., MLBN

• NFL: Dallas at NY Giants, 8:15 p.m., ABC, ESPN, ESPN2

Sonny Jones can be reached at wibbyj@gmail.com and follow on Twitter @FOSonnyJones.