Billionaire NASCAR Team Owner Michael Jordan Makes First Cup Appearance of 2024 at COTA

6x NBA champion and Hall of Famer “Big Mike” Michael Jordan has officially made his presence felt for 23XI Racing at Austin’s track, the Circuit of the Americas. A lot of excitement lies ahead for Big Mike, considering an “international” return to 23XI is at hand. Moreover, the Denny Hamlin co-owned organization also comes into COTA as the defending champions, with #45 Tyler Reddick considerably confident as one of the favorites to repeat his COTA celebrations.

Michael Jordan watches 23XI Racing’s Texas advance

As for Denny Hamlin, JGR’s #11 driver will be looking to make good of his Bristol momentum. However, this week, the majority of the eyes have been on his joint venture with MJ as NASCAR heads to a road circuit for the first time in 2024. To increase their chances for a COTA title defense, 23XI have brought back Japanese F1 star and FIA World Endurance Champion Kamui Kobayashi in the #50 Toyota as their third entry.

Nevertheless, MJ’s own return to the 23XI paddock to help kick off the festivities has caught everyone’s attention. In recent updates on Twitter, MJ was spotted enjoying the views, and the twists and turns the 3.426-mile circuit has to offer. Earlier today renowned motorsports journalists Dustin Albino shared this on X, captioning his post, “Michael Jordan is in the Nos. 23 and 45 pits watching practice at COTA”

After making his first appearance in 2024, Jordan certainly has a lot to look forward to as the 23XI contingent could pull out their 6th race victory in NASCAR. The #45 is the fourth-best averaging driver on the track coming into the EchoPark automotive Grandprix. Reddick has placed in the top 10 all three times the Cup Series season moved to the Texas road course. 

Nevertheless, the rest of 23XI Racing could also pose a decent challenge and continue to portray the might of the new Camry XSE body.

23XI Racing could pull off their 6th win

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Kobayashi will be returning to the #50 Toyota after his debut at the Brickyard where he finished 33rd last season. He will certainly be looking to becoming the first Japanese driver to win a race with Toyota, after becoming only the second to race in the Cup Series. The first was Hideo Fukuyama, who ran only 4 races in the early 2000s in the #66 Ford.

On the other hand, 23XI Racing’s full-time #23 driver Bubba Wallace, the second African-American to win a NASCAR National Series race, will be looking to flip his road course fortunes. The #23 car has averaged a 38.0 finish in the last three races it ran on COTA. It registered a DNF in all three of those races.

Considering the latest 16 million dollar HQ investment in North Carolina, it is safe to say MJ is heavily invested in helping all three drivers grow on the asphalt of NASCAR. Playing a more active hand is truly the mark of a champion. With 6 NBA championships, Michael Jordan has nothing to prove. However, his racing team with Denny Hamlin certainly does, and COTA will reveal if 23XI Racing can live up to the expectations.

Read More: Tyler Reddick Lets Slip Boss Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin’s Genius That Separates $16 Million Worth of Investment From the Rest