Riley Herbst joins Michael Jordan’s 23XI Racing despite ongoing legal battle

23XI Racing on Wednesday announced the signing of Riley Herbst for the 2025 Cup Series season. Herbst's announcement has come amid 23XI Racing's stand-off against NASCAR regarding the charter dispute.

The Huntersville-based team may well have to compete as an open team next year because of this dispute. However, it has still added a third car to its roster. Herbst arrival to the 23XI Cup team comes from Stewart-Haas Racing's Xfinity team as SHR called off its NASCAR operations at the end of this season.

The Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin co-owned team is all set to add a third full-time car next season, and Herbst will drive the #35 Toyota Camry CSE alongside existing 23XI drivers, Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace.

"It‘s an honor to join 23XI and Toyota for the opportunity to race in the Cup Series each week,” Riley Herbst said in a statement. “Racing full-time in the Cup Series has been my goal since I started in NASCAR and I‘m excited to start my Cup career with such an accomplished and driven team."

"What 23XI has accomplished in a short time is impressive and I look forward to building on their success as the organization grows. It‘s also great to continue representing Monster and I‘m excited about adding to their legacy in NASCAR," he added.

23XI has reportedly inherited one of SHR's charters and brought in Herbst along with it. Interestingly, the 25-year-old also brings Monster Energy with him as his primary sponsor. Notably, Monster Energy is also the primary sponsor of two other drivers — Tyler Reddick of 23XI and Ty Gibbs of Joe Gibbs Racing.

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23XI Racing's statement on signing Riley Herbst

NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Riley Herbst (98) during the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship race at Phoenix Raceway. Credt-Imagn Images

23XI Racing team president, Steve Lauletta termed Riley Herbst's addition as a valuable chapter to its growth in the sport. Herbst already has ample experience racing in the stock car set-up and has taken part in eight Cup Series races in his career so far.

“As 23XI enters our fifth season next year, we felt the time was right to continue the growth of our organization by adding a third team, and Riley is a driver we think will be a great fit for us,” Lauletta said. “We have a very solid foundation with both Bubba and Tyler, and we know they will be a great resource for Riley as he begins his journey in the Cup Series.”

With this, Herbst will begin his first full-time Cup Series entry. He finished the 2024 Xfinity Series in seventh place and ended the year on a high after winning the season-ending race at Phoenix.