Many know about Michael Jordan as the greatest player to grace NBA hardwood, famously capturing six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls. Not many know about the Jordan who is passionate about racecar driving. Where did that love come from you ask? His Airness once spoke about this passion during a 2017 interview with Cigar Aficionado.
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Like most things MJ was passionate about, his father exposed him to racing when he was a kid. “I grew up a Nascar fan,” Jordan told host Marvin R. Shaken at the time before revealing his favorite driver. “I was a Richard Petty fan.” My father used to take the whole family, pack us all in the Chrysler Plymouth and we would drive all over North Carolina South Carolina and go watch stock car racing.”
Given just how close MJ was to his father, it makes sense that a tradition he had with him was what led him down the path of owning a NASCAR team. After all, he did quit the NBA to focus on baseball solely to fulfil his father’s wishes of at the very least trying the sport once in his life.
Funnily enough, the stock car races stuck with Jordan the most. “I was more into stock car racing than anything else,” he admitted. It makes sense. Jordan launched his own motorsports team in the early 2000s, who competed up until 2013.
It was a couple years after this interview in 2017, that MJ officially became a NASCAR team owner. The basketball great partnered up with famed driver Denny Hamlin to form 23XI Racing. The team made its debut at the NASCAR Cup Series in 2021.
While 23XI Racing has yet to win a NASCAR Cup Championship, they have gotten close. 2024 was a big year for the team, finishing 6th in the championship race — with the 2025 season only getting underway. Knowing Jordan’s competitive edge, it doesn’t seem like it will be long before he’s raising up yet another trophy — this time as an owner.
Jordan isn’t just in it for the fame or the fortune either
Jordan is one of the most accomplished athletes in the world, possibly at the very top of the list. Yet, his passion for racing isn’t just another attempt to launch back into the limelight. MJ is truly just a fan.
“I’ve been a fan for so long. And I’m always going to be that. Making money or losing money, I’m going to be a fan of NASCAR,” he told FOX Sports in 2024. “This is authenticity in the making for me that I’m involved in something that I truly, truly love and I wake up each and every weekend looking forward to each and every race.”
MJ’s 23XI does have some notable racers on their team, like Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace. A championships shouldn’t allude them for too long, but even if it does, Jordan is just enjoying the ride.
