23XI Racing

23XI Racing (pronounced twenty-three eleven) is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. It is owned and operated by Hall of Fame basketball player Michael Jordan, with current Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin as a minority partner. The team fields the No. 23 Toyota for driver Bubba Wallace, with a technical alliance with JGR.[3]

23XI Racing
Owner(s)Michael Jordan
Denny Hamlin
BaseMooresville, North Carolina[1]
SeriesNASCAR Cup Series
Race drivers23. Ty Dillon, Bubba Wallace
Sponsors23. DoorDash, McDonald's, Columbia Sportswear, Dr Pepper, Root, Inc.[2]
ManufacturerToyota
Opened2020

History

During the summer of 2020, rumors swirled that basketball player Michael Jordan intended on purchasing an ownership stake in Richard Petty Motorsports, who fielded the only black driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, Bubba Wallace. Such claims were repeatedly denied by Jordan's management team.[4][5]

Bubba Wallace (2021)

On September 21, 2020, Jordan and Denny Hamlin announced the formation of a Cup team to begin competition in 2021 with Jordan as majority owner, Hamlin as minority owner and Wallace as the driver.[6] The team bought a guaranteed starting spot in every 2021 race by purchasing a charter from Germain Racing.[7] The team's name, car number and manufacturer were not revealed at the time of the announcement.[8] Hamlin later said that the two had discussed owning a team but that it never came to fruition.[9] On October 22, the team announced its name, 23XI Racing, and would use the number 23 (Jordan's number during his basketball career).[10] On October 30, the team revealed that they will run Toyotas with a technical alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing (whose No. 11 car is driven by Hamlin) and operate out of a shop owned (and formerly used by) Germain Racing.[3] On December 14, 23XI Racing announced that DoorDash, McDonald's, Columbia Sportswear, Dr Pepper, and Root, Inc. will be the sponsors of the No. 23 team in 2021. It was also announced that several crew members of the former Germain operation would join the team as a pit crew.[2] On February 3, it was announced that former Germain driver Ty Dillon (who will run the Daytona 500 with fellow Toyota team Gaunt Brothers Racing) would run the car in the 2021 Busch Clash, as Wallace was not eligible to run the clash.[11]

Car No. 23 results
23XI Racing No. 23
Year Driver No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 Owners Pts
2021 Bubba Wallace 23 Toyota DAY DAY HOM LVS PHO ATL BRI MAR RCH TAL KAN DAR DOV COA CLT SON NSH POC POC ROA ATL NHA GLN IND MCH DAY DAR RCH BRI LVS TAL CLT TEX KAN MAR PHO -* -*

References
  1. "Hamlin expands on 23XI plans". Racer.com. Racer Media & Marketing, Inc. October 30, 2020. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  2. "23XI Racing announces sponsors". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. December 14, 2020. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  3. "Bubba Wallace, Denny Hamlin reveal manufacturer, technical alliance for 23XI Racing". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. October 30, 2020. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  4. Barrabi, Thomas (August 27, 2020). "Michael Jordan not interested in buying into Bubba Wallace's NASCAR team, rep says". FOX Business. FOX News Network, LLC. Archived from the original on October 9, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  5. Taranto, Steven (August 28, 2020). "'No truth' to rumor of Michael Jordan exploring NASCAR ownership". 247Sports. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  6. "Bubba Wallace to drive for owners Michael Jordan, Denny Hamlin in 2021". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. September 21, 2020. Archived from the original on October 4, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  7. Li, David K.; Long, Dustin (September 22, 2020). "Michael Jordan buys spot to form NASCAR team, hires Bubba Wallace". NBC News. Archived from the original on October 8, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  8. "Denny Hamlin forming Cup team with Michael Jordan; Bubba Wallace to drive; charter from Germain Racing". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. September 21, 2020. Archived from the original on October 2, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  9. "Michael Jordan, Denny Hamlin to field NASCAR Cup car with Bubba Wallace driving". ESPN. Associated Press. September 21, 2020. Archived from the original on October 10, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  10. Long, Dustin (October 22, 2020). "Michael Jordan-Denny Hamlin team to be known as 23XI Racing". NBC Sports. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
  11. "Ty Dillon to run Busch Clash for 23XI Racing". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. February 3, 2021. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.