23XI Racing Overview
23XI Racing (pronounced “twenty-three eleven”) is an American professional auto racing team that competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series. The organization is owned by Basketball Hall of Fame legend Michael Jordan, three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin, and businessman Curtis Polk. The team’s name combines Jordan’s iconic jersey number 23 with Hamlin’s longtime Cup Series car number 11, a tribute to the two figures at the heart of the project. Headquartered in Huntersville, North Carolina, 23XI Racing fields multiple Toyota Camry entries and maintains a long-running technical alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing.
Since opening in 2020 and debuting on track in 2021, 23XI Racing has built a competitive multi-car operation in the premier NASCAR national series. The team campaigns the No. 23 for Bubba Wallace, the No. 35 for Riley Herbst, the No. 45 for Tyler Reddick, and a part-time No. 67 for Corey Heim. The team’s primary partners include DoorDash, McDonald’s, Columbia Sportswear, Dr Pepper, and Root, Inc., reflecting a high-profile commercial footprint. Through a combination of star ownership, technical depth, and aggressive on-track recruitment, 23XI Racing has emerged as one of the most visible new organizations in modern NASCAR.
Founding and Organizational Origins
During the summer of 2020, rumors circulated that Michael Jordan was preparing to purchase an ownership stake in Richard Petty Motorsports, then home to the only Black driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, Bubba Wallace. Jordan’s representatives publicly denied the reports, even as speculation continued. On September 21, 2020, Jordan and Denny Hamlin confirmed that they would form a new Cup team to begin competition in 2021, with Jordan as majority owner, Hamlin as minority owner, and Wallace as the lead driver. To guarantee entry into every race of the 2021 Cup Series schedule, the group purchased a charter from Germain Racing.
The team revealed its identity in stages. On October 22, 2020, the organization announced the name 23XI Racing and confirmed it would carry the No. 23 in honor of Jordan’s basketball career. On October 30, 2020, 23XI announced that it would campaign Toyotas and had secured a technical alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing, the team for which Hamlin drives the No. 11. The new group operated out of a shop formerly used by Germain Racing, and several former Germain crew members transitioned into the 23XI pit crew. On December 14, 2020, 23XI unveiled DoorDash, McDonald’s, Columbia Sportswear, Dr Pepper, and Root, Inc. as founding sponsors of the No. 23 entry.
Growth Into NASCAR Cup Series Competition
23XI Racing’s competitive debut came at the 2021 Daytona 500, where Bubba Wallace started the team’s on-track history. The organization steadily built its infrastructure through its rookie season, with Steve Lauletta — a veteran motorsports executive — eventually being named team president on September 8, 2021, after serving as interim president since the team’s formation. The team’s first Cup victory came later that fall when Wallace won the rain-shortened 2021 YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, becoming only the second Black driver to win a NASCAR Cup Series race after Wendell Scott.
On July 12, 2022, 23XI Racing announced that two-time NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Tyler Reddick had signed with the team for the 2024 season. Eleven days later, Hamlin confirmed that beginning in 2023, 23XI would field its own dedicated pit crews rather than leasing them from Joe Gibbs Racing. In May 2024, the organization opened a new race shop and team headquarters, named Airspeed, in Huntersville, North Carolina. The team also expanded into additional car numbers, including the No. 35, No. 45, No. 50, and No. 67, while broadening its driver lineup through developmental signings and high-profile part-time entries.
23XI Racing Competitive Journey
Across its first five seasons in the NASCAR Cup Series, 23XI Racing has progressed from a single-car start-up into a multi-car organization competing for race wins, playoff berths, and a championship. The team has recorded 9 race victories, 8 pole positions, and 180 races competed through the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix, establishing itself as a regular threat in modern Cup competition.
Early Seasons and Development (2021–2022)
23XI Racing’s first competitive season in 2021 was defined by steady growth. Bubba Wallace struggled early but produced flashes of speed, including a third-place run at the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona that was officially scored as second after post-race inspection. The team’s first victory arrived in October 2021 at Talladega, when Wallace took the rain-shortened YellaWood 500 and delivered 23XI its breakthrough moment. Wallace closed his rookie 23XI campaign 21st in the standings, while the team added a second entry for 2022 by signing veteran Kurt Busch to drive the No. 45 Toyota Camry, a number selected to reference a jersey number Jordan wore during his baseball career and briefly in the NBA.
On August 27, 2021, 23XI announced that Kurt Busch would pilot the No. 45 in 2022, with longtime sponsor Monster Energy following him from Chip Ganassi Racing. Following the 2021 season, 23XI purchased the former StarCom Racing charter for $13.5 million, the most expensive charter sale since the system was implemented in 2016. The 2022 campaign featured both progress and disruption. Wallace finished second at the Daytona 500, while Busch won at Kansas Speedway before a qualifying crash at Pocono ended his full-time season. The team leaned on substitute drivers and eventually moved Wallace into the No. 45 to keep the entry alive in the owners’ championship, an effort that produced a second career win for Wallace at Kansas.
Breakthrough in the NASCAR Cup Series (2023–2024)
The 2023 season marked 23XI Racing’s first sustained playoff push. Bubba Wallace qualified for the Cup Series playoffs for the first time in his career and was eliminated in the Round of 12 at the Charlotte Roval. Tyler Reddick, now in the No. 45, scored early victories at Circuit of the Americas in triple overtime and at Kansas Speedway during the playoffs, advancing to the Round of 12. The team’s competitive standing was reinforced by off-track developments as well, including the addition of new car numbers and drivers such as Travis Pastrana and Kamui Kobayashi in limited Cup starts.
In 2024, 23XI Racing opened its new Airspeed facility in Huntersville, expanded its commercial portfolio, and ran the No. 50 Mobil 1 Toyota Camry as a special anniversary entry. Bubba Wallace broke through with a victory at Indianapolis, snapping a 100-race winless streak and returning 23XI to the playoffs. Tyler Reddick enjoyed a banner year, winning at Talladega and Michigan before clinching the 2024 regular-season championship by one point over Kyle Larson. He locked himself into the Championship 4 by winning at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The season was not without controversy, as the No. 23 was penalized following the Martinsville playoff race for race manipulation involving Christopher Bell, resulting in fines and the suspension of crew chief Bootie Barker.
Modern Program and Current Direction (2025–Present)
23XI Racing began 2025 with Bubba Wallace, Tyler Reddick, and Riley Herbst as full-time drivers across the Nos. 23, 45, and 35 entries, with Corey Heim added as a developmental driver in the part-time No. 67. Wallace opened the year with a DNF at the 2025 Daytona 500 and answered with a win at Indianapolis, returning to the playoffs. On February 23, 2025, the team announced that Heim had signed a developmental deal that includes Cup races in the No. 67 and Xfinity Series races in the Sam Hunt Racing No. 24 car, deepening the team’s driver pipeline.
Off the track, 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports filed an antitrust lawsuit against NASCAR on October 2, 2024, challenging the updated charter agreement and alleging anti-competitive practices by the France family. On December 18, 2024, the teams were granted a preliminary injunction allowing them to race as chartered entries in 2025, and the injunction also enabled the transfer of two Stewart–Haas Racing charters to both organizations. On June 5, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals overturned the preliminary injunction ruling. On August 25, NASCAR filed a legal notice of its agreement to issue one of the charters to a redacted entity, and on December 11, 2025, after eight days in court, the case was settled.
Philosophy and Competitive Strengths
23XI Racing has built its identity around Toyota reliability, the engineering resources of Joe Gibbs Racing, and an aggressive, high-profile recruitment strategy. The team has demonstrated strength on intermediate ovals, superspeedways, and road courses, with race-winning performances at Talladega, Kansas, COTA, Michigan, Homestead, and Indianapolis. Crew chief continuity and the move to in-house pit crews in 2023 have given the organization tighter control over race-day execution, while the Airspeed headquarters in Huntersville has centralized car preparation and engineering.
Key Milestones and Major Moments
Among 23XI Racing’s most important moments, Bubba Wallace’s 2021 YellaWood 500 victory at Talladega stands as a historic first Cup win for the team, and Tyler Reddick’s 2024 regular-season championship highlighted the organization’s rise into championship contention. The opening of the Airspeed race shop, the expansion to four car numbers, and the courtroom victory that preserved chartered status for 2025 each represent defining organizational milestones.
23XI Racing Achievements and Results
Since its 2021 debut, 23XI Racing has recorded 9 race victories, 8 pole positions, and 180 races competed through the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix, while fielding entries that have reached the Cup Series playoffs in multiple seasons.
NASCAR Cup Series Achievements
23XI Racing’s first NASCAR Cup Series victory came at the 2021 YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, where Bubba Wallace became only the second Black driver to win a Cup race. Tyler Reddick added victories at Circuit of the Americas in 2023 and at Kansas Speedway during the 2023 playoffs, before delivering multiple 2024 wins at Talladega, Michigan, and Homestead-Miami Speedway. The Homestead win locked Reddick into the Championship 4 and underscored 23XI’s arrival as a championship-caliber team.