"I dragged Michael Jordan into this space”: When former NBA player credited himself for bringing $3.6B 23XI owner into NASCAR 

In 2020, Brad Daugherty opened up on how he influenced Michael Jordan to enter NASCAR as an owner. Daugherty is a former NBA player and a rival of Jordan from their playing days. But since 2008, he has also held up the role of an owner in the NASCAR garage with JTG Daugherty Racing.

As an owner at the highest level of stock car racing, Daugherty spoke to Michael Jordan before the $3.6B worth (as per Celebrity Net Worth) legend became one-half of 23XI Racing. He said:

"My family has been around racing my whole life. My uncles, my father, everybody -- they were drag racers. So I grew up around race cars... I've been in the NASCAR space for about 30 years and have owned a team for about 20-25 years. It's a lot of fun; I love hot rods, and I dragged Michael into this space now, so he's racing with us."

Daugherty further revealed that in their college days, Jordan would always give him 'a hard time' about being a NASCAR fan. However, deep down, the JTG Daugherty co-owner knew the future Chicago Bulls legend had a soft spot for stock car racing.

"He would also sit there and watch with me. He liked it. He always did," Daugherty added.

Michael Jordan saw the potential of being a champion in NASCAR before committing to 23XI Racing

The 23XI Racing driver, Tyler Reddick, won the 2024 regular season and further qualified into the Championship 4. Earlier last year, the Michael Jordan co-owned organization also opened the doors to their new facility, Airspeed. And all of this began with Michael Jordan seeing the potential to achieve what he has achieved a lot in his career as an NBA player.

In a 2020 interview, ahead of the first season of 23XI Racing which began as a one-car operation led by Bubba Wallace, Jordan opened up on a key factor in him becoming a NASCAR owner. He said that Wallace has the potential to be a NASCAR champion one day. He further described:

"If I didn't think so, I wouldn't get into this. Luck has a lot of do [with winning] in a lot of sports. But if you feel you have the same knowledge and the same equipment, you give yourself a chance. Then it's all up to the driver."

Jordan claimed that his foray into NASCAR with 23XI was something he saw as a chance to educate 'a new audience' and open up more opportunities for black people in racing.

Four seasons into its operation, 23XI Racing has grown into one of the fastest-expanding organizations in NASCAR. What started as a one-car team in 2021, will soon be a three-car operation.