Denny Hamlin On Exactly How He Kickstarted the 23XI Dream With Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin created history last week by forcing NASCAR to settle the antitrust lawsuit that was in trial at the courthouse since the beginning of the month. The settlement represented a huge win for every team owner in the sport and catapulted 23XI Racing to a legendary status. To think all this began in a basketball game that Hamlin happened to attend.

Speaking on the Digital Social Hour podcast earlier this year, the No. 11 driver narrated how he became a business partners with Jordan and how 23XI Racing came to exist. He said, “I met him at a Charlotte Hornets game. I had courtside seats.

“I’m leaving to go to the restroom at halftime. He had his security guys come grab me. He said, “Hey, Michael would like to meet you”, Hamlin added. 

“From that point on, he got my number, started asking me all these questions about NASCAR. And I’m like, ‘What? Wait a minute. You watch NASCAR?’ He’s like, ‘Dude, I never miss. Every Sunday, I’m sitting in front of a TV watching NASCAR.”

Jordan has been an avid NASCAR fan since childhood, developing the interest from the races that his father used to take him to as a kid. Following that first meeting, they’d taken their friendship to the next level by playing games of golf together.

Noticing Jordan’s interest, Hamlin requested that he supply the gear for his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing team through Nike, and the NBA legend obliged. Soon enough, the idea of owning a race team together popped up, and the rest is history. 

Has Hamlin taught Jordan how to race cars?

Driving a stock car is not an easy business. Even for Jordan. Wanting to experience what it was like, he once asked Hamlin for the chance to get into the professional-grade simulator that Cup Series drivers use to prepare for races.

Following some special adjustments to the rig to fit his size, the Chicago Bulls legend got into the simulator and came out with a very clear picture of just how hard it is to handle a stock car.

Hamlin said, “He got in it, and he probably lasted 10 minutes, and he’s like, ‘It’s making me shake.’ They had to retrofit him to get in there in the first place. But they did, and he had a blast.” Jordan developed a newfound respect for what drivers did that day.