WATCH: 23XI Racing unveils latest Jordan Brand car design based on iconic sneaker
23XI Racing has done it again, as this morning they released another Jordan Brand shoe inspired paint scheme for the the No. 45 car. The look will debut this Sunday at Richmond Raceway in the Federated Auto Parts 400, and will feature a paint job inspired by one of the most iconic Jordan Brand color ways and sneakers of all time, the “Concord” 11.
This isn’t the first time that 23XI Racing owners Michael Jordan and current driver Denny Hamlin have cooked up a sneaker inspired car, a few months ago they feared a “Black Cement” Jordan 3 inspired car at Kansas Speedway.
Driver Kurt Busch is normally at the wheel for 23XI Racing in the No. 45 car, but suffered a concussion after a wreck during qualifying for the M&M’s Fan Appreciation 400 at Pocono on July 23. Busch has missed the past three races as he continues to recover, and is still questionable for Sunday’s race in Richmond. Grandson of Joe Gibbs, Ty Gibbs, has been driving in Busch’s place the past three races, and will likely be donning the “Concord” 11 No. 45 car if Busch doesn’t return to the 23XI Racing team this weekend.
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23XI Racing made their debut in 2021 at the Daytona 500 as a single-car team with Bubba Wallace driving the No. 23 car. In 2022 they added Kurt Busch and the No. 45 car to the team, and the duo of Wallace and Bush has secured two wins and one pole position for the 23XI team.
Busch was fresh off of a top ten finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway before suffering his injury, and the 23XI announced that the 19 year old Xfinity Series driver Ty Gibbs would take his place, making his cup series debut.
Gibbs splashed on the scene of the Xfinity Series circuit winning his debut race in Daytona, breaking the record for youngest driver to win an Xfinity road course race and becoming the first to finish first in their debut without prior experience in the Nascar Cup Series. Gibbs has since secured nine wins, 23 top-ten finishes, and four poles before getting called up to the Nascar Cup Series.
Gibbs finished 16th and 17th in his first two Cup Series races filling in for Busch, and in his last race at the FireKeepers Casino 400 secured his first top-ten finish placing tenth. It’s sill not confirmed if Busch will make his return this weekend at Richmond or if Gibbs will continue to race for the 23XI team, but whoever is behind the wheel will hopefully get some good luck from the “Concord” 11 Camry, as the “Black Cement” inspired car had a first place finish at Kansas Motor Speedway in May.