Kurt Busch reveals what racing for Michael Jordan's 23XI team is like
In his first year with Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin’s 23XI Racing team, NASCAR driver Kurt Busch has had a successful season so far. 23XI Racing entered its second season as a team with Busch as a new driver for them, joining Bubba Wallace as the team’s two drivers. Busch is currently positioned to qualify for the playoffs after his win at Kansas Speedway earlier this season, and he recently spoke about the competitive fire from his team’s owner being a major part of his success.
Kurt Busch on driving for Michael Jordan
“We’re racing with Michael Jordan type of spirit,” Busch said, via Fox News Autos.
There’s no question that Jordan’s emergence on the NASCAR scene has been a point of excitement for fans and the sport itself — something that Busch attributes to his “incredible blend of coolness and power” that he’s providing to 23XI Racing.
Busch’s win at Kansas was the second race win in 23XI Racing’s short history, with their team winning their first ever race last season when Wallace won at Talladega. Despite his win, Wallace failed to qualify for the playoff chase last season — making Busch’s current run the first potential playoff hunt for the team.
“When we just missed out on pole position at Loudon [New Hampshire], he texted me with the [shrug] emoji of ‘Why’d you choke? What’d you do wrong? I thought you had it.’ That’s him. That’s the fan. That’s the sport in him.”
Jordan’s knowledge of NASCAR comes from him being a North Carolina native, and Busch explained that Jordan gives feedback to his drivers in a group chat after race day.
“He loves his cars, he loves to win and, you know, there’s that responsibility that I feel when I race for him,” Busch said.
Busch and Wallace continued their playoff push on Sunday at Pocono with a chance to win more points for 23XI Racing as they were competitive through the first two stages of the race. Wallace was near the front of the pack with a late restart before the second stage ended, but a late pit stop for new tires with three laps left in the stage pushed him back before the back half of the race.