DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Michael Jordan inherited a love of racing from his late father, who packed everyone in the car and drove from North Carolina to several tracks every year because attending NASCAR races had become a way for the Jordan family to vacation.
Decades later, Jordan became the Daytona 500 winner.
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He was an ecstatic team owner during the victory celebrations, joining the festivities seconds before winner Tyler Reddick was presented with the trophy.
Redick paused the party and was embraced by Jordan before the Basketball Hall of Famer gave a high-five to 23XI Racing’s No. 45. A slew of well-wishers soon followed, including NASCAR president Jim France, who smiled, shook Jordan’s hand and expressed warm congratulations.
This is at least the second cordial public interaction the two have had since December, when France and NASCAR reached a settlement in a federal antitrust lawsuit filed by 23XI and Front Row Motorsports. The lawsuit has consumed the sport for more than two years and ended on the ninth day of the trial, with NASCAR relenting and settling before more humiliation for America’s top motorsport series.
The settlement is a huge victory for Jordan, who will forever be viewed as a team owner brave enough to stand up to NASCAR’s autocratic approach to dominating the series. But by the time Jordan arrived at Daytona International Speedway, he was already behind. He insisted at the start of the race on Sunday that his goal was to help NASCAR move forward and was focused on making 23XI a championship-contending racing team.
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“There’s been an impasse and we both need to have conversations about change, about how to grow the sport,” Jordan told Fox Sports before the green flag. “It’s unfortunate that we had to go through what we had to go through. But I think from that point on, you have a better appreciation for each other, and I think it opens up a conversation between each other to continue to grow the game.”
Hours later, he was celebrating in victory lane as if he had just won his seventh NBA championship. When France paused, it was clear that all parties were moving forward.
Three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin, Jordan’s partner at 23XI, represents the winning team’s owners and said there is no lingering bad blood between the parties.
“I think December was a wake-up call. I think the conversation since then has been a lot of self-reflection by NASCAR. I think they would have done things differently if they had had the opportunity,” Hamlin said. “But we know we need to stand up for what we believe is right. We now have to figure out how to get the sport back to where it was decades ago.
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“In order to do that, the only way we can do it is we all have to pull the rope in the same direction. I was even having a conversation with NASCAR executives a few days ago, sitting on the bus talking about what we need to do five years from now, two years from now, 10 years from now. What does the sport need to look like?
“These are very good conversations and they are very receptive to suggestions.”
Jordan didn’t become a NASCAR competitor until 2021, when he teamed up with three-time Daytona 500 winner Hamlin to form 23XI. He attends races—sometimes he watches from the pits, sometimes from his suite—and even though the team is run by someone else, Jordan is involved and sounds loyal to NASCAR.
Hamlin believes Reddick’s win is a win for NASCAR because it puts Jordan in the headlines.
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“It means a lot to the sport. He’s the most popular athlete in the world. I don’t think there’s any debate about that,” Hamlin said. “He loves the sport and of course he goes to a lot of races. Sometimes you don’t even see him but he’s there. He goes to more races than people know. He loves this team.”
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AP Racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
