CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Michael Jordan expects to field a winning team when 23XI Racing begins NASCAR competition next season. The first move toward victory lane came Friday in a partnership with Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota.
Jordan partnered with current NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin as new team owners and will field the No. 23 for Bubba Wallace. The formation of 23XI — pronounced twenty-three eleven — was completed in September but the final pieces weren’t confirmed until Friday.
Joe Gibbs Racing won last year’s Cup Series championship with Kyle Busch and both Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. are in contention for this year’s title. Hamlin has driven for Toyota and JGR since 2008, so an alliance with any other manufacturer would have been a significant conflict of interest.
“My main goal for 23XI Racing is to be competitive for a championship as soon as possible,” said Jordan. “Our partnership with Toyota and Joe Gibbs Racing gives us the equipment, resources and expertise to do it.”
JGR is the flagship Toyota team and considered one of NASCAR’s top organizations. Gibbs has won five Cup titles since 2000 and last year celebrated a banner season in which its four drivers combined to win 19 of 36 races.
But 23XI is not a fifth Gibbs car — that’s against NASCAR rules — and Hamlin had to prove its independence for the team to launch. 23XI will be a JGR customer and operate from a shop owned by Germain Racing, which is going out of business.
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