Michael Jordan’s Nascar career venture set to attract high-profile investors with NBA icon ‘passionate’ about sport
NBA icon Michael Jordan’s involvement in Nascar could have a huge impact on the sport.
The six-time NBA champion and Hall of Famer has been a co-owner of 23XI Racing alongside Nascar driver Denny Hamlin since 2020.
GettyNBA legend Michael Jordan co-owns the 23XI Racing Nascar team[/caption]
GettyThe team currently charters the No. 45 Toyota driven by Tyler Reddick[/caption]
GettyBubba Wallace also drives for 23XI in the No. 23 Toyota[/caption]
In the years since, 23XI Racing has made 120 race appearances, reaching the podium on 20 occasions, and racking up six wins.
The most recent came in April when Tyler Reddick took the No. 45 Toyota to victory lane at Talladega.
This proved a particularly momentous occasion for both 23XI Racing, Nascar, and Jordan as it marked the first race win at which the NBA legend was in attendance.
An ecstatic Jordan was captured celebrating with the team after the race, telling Fox Sports‘ Jamie Litle, “For us to win a big race like this, it means so much to me.”
He added that he was “all in” on Nascar, explaining, “It replaces a lot of the competitiveness that I had in basketball.”
Footage and photos of Jordan celebrating gleefully spread across social media, something that could work wonders for Nascar as a whole.
“It’s big for Nascar in the sense that when you have Michael Jordan and victory lane, those highlights are going to be shown at times and on shows that maybe Nascar wouldn’t reach on a normal weekend,” Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass told The U.S. Sun.
Pockrass admitted that Talladega is one of the more highly publicized races regardless, thanks in no small part to the Will Ferrell movie, Talladega Nights.
However, the Jordan effect still provided an undeniable boost in coverage.
“Michael Jordan’s just a whole another level, one of the most famous athletes, if not the most famous athlete in the world, celebrating a victory and showing the passion that he has for the sport,” Pockrass said.
“So it was big for Nascar to have that highlight and to have those images shown that Michael Jordan isn’t just an owner in this sport.
“He’s a passionate owner in this sport.”
When asked whether or not Nascar is hoping to attract more high-profile owners such as Jordan to their world, Pockrass said this was “certainly” something they would welcome.
“They want people who have money to invest in the sport,” he said.
YouTube/NASCAR on FoxJordan was recently on hand to celebrate his first Nascar win in person at Talladega[/caption]
“And I think when people see that Michael Jordan is involved, they’ll be like, well, okay, maybe I know somebody who knows somebody who knows somebody who knows Michael or the people in his business circle who can make a call and say, ‘Hey, is this something worth investing in?’
“‘Why did you invest? And what would make it smart for us to invest?’
“Now, part of the reason why Michael invested is because his father used to work on race cars in North Carolina.
“So he has that connection that many people wouldn’t have.
“He has that passion for the sport that many people wouldn’t have, but he can also talk to them from a business standpoint of the pros and the cons of owning a race team.”
I think when people see that Michael Jordan is involved, they’ll be like, well, okay, maybe I know somebody who knows somebody who knows somebody who knows Michael or the people in his business circle who can make a call and say, ‘Hey, is this something worth investing in?’
Bob PockrassFox Sports Nascar reporter
Jordan opened up on his long-standing relationship with Nascar in an interview with The Charlotte Observer in 2020.
“Rockingham, Darlington, Talladega, Daytona, Richmond. We used to go on Sunday family trips: Load up our chicken and Cokes and go spend the day,” Jordan explained.
Of course, Jordan isn’t the only high-profile owner in the Nascar Cup Series.
NFL and Nascar legend Joe Gibbs, Formula 1 team owner Gene Haas, and former Nascar and IndyCar series champion Tony Stewart are among those with stakes in the series.
However, most owners have preexisting ties to the sport, with musician Pitbull – who part owns Trackhouse Racing – the most obvious exception.
Celebrity ownership in racing teams is far from a new concept.
Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, boxer Anthony Joshua, golfer Rory McIlroy, NFL stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, and actor Michael B. Jordan are among the owners of F1 team Alpine.
While longtime talk show host David Letterman is a co-owner of the Rahal-Letterman-Lanigan IndyCar team.
COULD JORDAN CHANGE THE SPORT?
Unfortunately for Nascar, recent comments by Jordan could scare away potential investors if the organization doesn’t take on board his advice soon.
Jordan has been calling for Nascar to allow for permanent charters – something of a sticking point currently between team owners and the series.
“If you had permanent charters, then you could create a revenue stream, either with new investors or different types of sponsorships that would subsidize that type of variance between ownership and the league,” he told The New York Times.
Jordan suggested that should this situation not be corrected, the sport is “going to die” as “economically it doesn’t make sense for any businesspeople.”
“In all partnerships, if you grow the pie, that means your business is going to continue to grow,” he said.
“And to grow the pie, you’ve got to make sure everybody’s healthy within the partnership.
“If our ownership in Nascar is losing money and Nascar’s the only one making money, that’s not a good partnership.”
APJordan recently suggested Nascar could ‘die’ if permanent charters are not introduced[/caption]
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