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For the better part of the last two decades, Michael Jordan has spent his time away from the cameras and out of the limelight. To see the most iconic athlete in American history back in the public eye yet again has been a revelation to many, but the reason Jordan has re-emerged shouldn’t be surprising to anyone who knows what his original sporting love was as a young boy growing up in the stock car capital of the world.
Jordan spent his childhood traveling to races throughout North Carolina with his father, drawing an immediate affinity for the sport that means more in the state than it does anywhere else on the planet. Stock car racing, specifically NASCAR, became such an impassioned following for the Jordans that they often scheduled their family vacations around attending races. There’s even a viral picture of Jordan with “The King” of stock car racing, Richard Petty, ahead of the 1982 World 600 after Jordan had just finished his freshman season at UNC.
Two Daytona 500 champions
Michael Jordan and Richard Petty in 1982 pic.twitter.com/CDQns40K4f
— nascarman (@nascarman_rr) February 15, 2026
From Lifelong Fan To Team Owner
Jordan made his official foray into the NASCAR world in 2020, partnering with three-time Daytona 500 champion Denny Hamlin to form the 23XI (pronounced 23-11) racing team that summer. 23XI made its first official entry at the 2021 Daytona 500 after Bubba Wallace agreed to a deal to become the team’s inaugural driver. Wallace secured the team and Jordan’s first Cup Series win at Talladega in October 2021.
In 2022, the team signed former NASCAR Cup Series champion Kurt Busch to a deal to drive the No. 45 car, but a back injury sustained during a mid-season crash at Pocono was effectively the end of his driving career. That led to arguably the most pivotal move in the early history of 23XI racing ahead of the 2023 season. The team bought out the remainder of Tyler Reddick’s contract from Richard Childress Racing and put him in the No. 45 seat.
Since Reddick’s arrival, he’s taken the mantle from Wallace as 23XI’s top dog, earning eight of his 11 total career race victories since joining the team four seasons ago. Reddick made the Championship Race in 2024, finishing a career high fourth in the points standings while establishing himself on the top tier of drivers in the sport. Reddick surprisingly went winless in 2025, but what he’s done to start 2026 has made him one of the most talked about athletes in all of the sports world in recent weeks.
Historic Start To 2026
Reddick kicked off 23XI’s season by winning the 2026 Daytona 500, aptly nicknamed “The Super Bowl of Stock Car Racing”, on February 15. Considering the fanfare surrounding that race’s winner, Reddick then spent the entire ensuing week fulfilling media and corporate obligations before making his way down to Atlanta (another notoriously tough track) to run the second race of the season. Where most other drivers would have succumbed to the added distractions and pressure, Reddick thrived and stole a second consecutive victory at a superspeedway thanks to some convenient luck as well.
WHERE DID HE COME FROM?!
TYLER REDDICK IS A DAYTONA 500 CHAMPION! pic.twitter.com/IaXoaKwwMf
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) February 15, 2026
At both races, FOX’s Jamie Little landed both pre and post race interviews with Jordan, presumably for no cost whatsoever. It’s a laughable contrast to the deal Jordan sold to NBC before the NBA season. He was supposedly going to be an occasional presence in the network’s basketball coverage but instead gave a single brief interview to Mike Tirico, which was cut into several different parts and aired across several games. Little has become Jordan’s chosen liaison in NASCAR media, and he reportedly seeks her out intentionally and exclusively when being bombarded with interview requests at the track.
At Circuit of the Americas in Austin this past Sunday, Reddick put together his most impressive performance of the trio and became the first driver in NASCAR history to win three consecutive races to begin a season, dusting the field on what is essentially the United States’ national road course. The most impressive part of the win was the fact that he held off road course ringer Shane Van Gisbergen for the latter portion of the race, which is no small task as Van Gisbergen is widely considered among the best closed wheel road course drivers of all time.
A Consequential Combo
After the race, an ecstatic Jordan gave yet another interview to Little. The basketball legend gave Reddick credit for holding off such a daunting talent in Van Gisbergen, who he referred to by his nickname SVG. He then shared a passionate moment with co-owner Denny Hamlin, telling his friend and business partner “I get all the credit, but you the brains, dude!”
Michael Jordan to Denny Hamlin:
“I get all the credit but you the brains, dude!”pic.twitter.com/09XbDkqONo https://t.co/eLMpEpXFyc
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) March 2, 2026
Hamlin, a basketball fanatic who has spent his adult years residing in North Carolina, originally came to know Jordan through his courtside attendance of Charlotte Bobcats (and then Hornets) games while Jordan was still a majority owner of the franchise. The pair were first introduced at halftime of a 2010 game, where Jordan was reportedly just as interested in meeting Hamlin as Hamlin was in meeting him. Not long after, Hamlin reached an agreement with Jordan Brand to be the company’s first NASCAR athlete.
While the wins on the track have certainly been something and have commanded the most attention, the most meaningful thing Jordan has done since joining NASCAR was suing the organization. Jordan, Hamlin and the rest of the 23XI team, as well as Front Row Racing and Richard Childress Racing, filed an antitrust lawsuit against NASCAR in regards to their unbalanced charter system in addition to alleged anti-competitive practices by the family in charge of the sport.
Saving The Sport?
The case went to trial on December 5 and was shockingly settled on December 11, re-instating the charters for 23XI and Front Row Racing, who would have certainly had to fold had NASCAR won the lawsuit. Charters for all NASCAR teams became permanent with the settlement and teams also received an increased revenue share of the sport’s media and endorsement deals.
Michael Jordan talking about the settlement, the legacy of NASCAR, and the potential impact of the lawsuit on the sport’s future.
“I grew up watching his father [France] build this sport…I didn’t want to tear it down…”#NASCAR pic.twitter.com/33YnsBCpuX
— Michael Praats (@michael_praats) December 11, 2025
While a lot of casual fans are saying Jordan is saving NASCAR because he’s bringing attention to what was considered by many to be an ailing sport, he really saved the sport from itself this winter. Jordan was present at each court proceeding and even testified, and make no mistake, that made a difference in the public perception which was a driving force in securing the settlement.
