Throwback to 1982 When 19-Year-Old Michael Jordan Met “The King” Richard Petty for the First Time at Charlotte Motor Speedway

Michael Jordan‘s knack for sports is beyond the boundaries of the NBA and has expanded to the world of NASCAR as well, not to mention that he co-owns the 23XI Racing team with Denny Hamlin. However, it’s not about the recent times when he portrayed his intrigue in stock car racing; it dates back to 1982, over 40 years ago.

The then-freshman Jordan was strengthening his roots in basketball as a member of the North Carolina Tar Heels national championship team. Having a significant love for motorsports, he didn’t shy away from expressing his affinity toward it, following which he got an opportunity to meet “The King.”

When Michael Jordan met Richard Petty on the racetrack

It was 1982, and Richard Petty was geared up in his Pontiac Grand Prix to dominate the oval at Charlotte Motor Speedway. But it was before his World 600 race that Jordan met Petty, following which both the heroes unveiled being fans of each other.

This shows the dominance that both the North Carolinians showcased in their world of sports as it was the first time that Jordan and Petty met each other, yet, were each other’s admirers. Their pre-race meeting couldn’t possibly go unnoticed as it caught numerous eyes, be it of a writer, reporter, or even the spectators.

After 40 years of the first-ever meeting of two sporting heroes, a fan shared a throwback image on X, capturing the moment when those two smiled in the image with their mouths wide open. He posted the image and captioned it, “Richard Petty and Michael Jordan. This is at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1982. MJ is not new to NASCAR. proud to have found this! The 2 greatest of their domain!”

Read More: Watch: The King Richard Petty Unleashes His Inner Chef as He Cooks His Favourite Meal

The ardent race fan must’ve felt necessary to highlight one of the most iconic things to have ever happened in the history of sports. However, it’s not the first time that their 1982 picture caught the community’s attention as in 2020, a similar revelation took the fanbase by storm.

When fans couldn’t contain their feelings on the iconic meet

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When in 2020, NASCARMemories shared the throwback image on X, the fans took no time and bombarded the comments section with their mixbag of reactions.

One fan took a hilarious jibe at the revelation and commented, “How ironic is this photo? Close to 40 years later a driver for Richard Petty leaves to go drive for Michael Jordan. #NASCAR,” as he aimed at Bubba Wallace’s move to Jordan owned 23XI Racing.

Another fan shared a mutual belief and wrote, “So ironic how things turn out. I hope Bubba has better luck as a successful driver…” However, she didn’t stop there, and expressed her feelings about the picture and commented, “That’s an amazing picture!!!”

This fan couldn’t possibly comprehend the reality that the image showcased and wrote, “Is this for real?”

One fan drew parallels about who entered the NASCAR scene before, Jordan or Denny Hamlin, and wrote, “So Jordan has been around NASCAR longer than Denny? 😏 ”

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Both had a great time meeting each other, but little did Petty know that the freshman champ he met at Charlotte Motor Speedway would one day be known as one of the GOATs of basketball, if not the outright very best.