Michael Jordan "I Put All of My Cards on the Table" with NASCAR Lawsuit
Michael Jordan, NBA legend and a longtime NASCAR fan, will see his 23XI Racing team compete for a championship in Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway as Tyler Reddick, the driver of the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota Camry XSE, locked into the championship race with a win at Homestead-Miami Speedway a couple of weeks ago.
As Reddick has marched toward potentially his first career NASCAR Cup Series title, and the first for the 23XI Racing team, which is in its fourth season in NASCAR's top series, the driver and team have had to avoid becoming distracted by an upcoming antitrust lawsuit against NASCAR, which was brought forth by 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports in regard to the 2025 Charter Agreement.
On Monday, Jordan, 23XI Racing, and Front Row Motorsports had their first day in court against NASCAR as the race team's lead attorney Jeffrey Kessler presented their case for a preliminary injunction to District Judge Frank D. Whitney in Charlotte, NC.
Following the day in court, Jordan spoke to the media on the steps of the courthouse. Jordan says he is confident that his 23XI Racing team will be able to put the lawsuit out of their mind as they hit the track this weekend at Phoenix Raceway.
"I've been in situations of disparity. I mean, I think the race team is going to focus on what they have to do this weekend, which I expect them to.," Jordan said. "I think Jeffrey did an unbelievable job today."
Jordan, and 23XI Racing, who are fighting for better terms for themselves and other NASCAR Cup Series race teams, feels that the issues that 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports have had with the 2025 Charter Agreement, particularly the provision that forces teams to waive their right to filing antitrust lawsuits against the sanctioning body were laid out well by Kessler to Judge Whitney on Monday.
"Yeah, I put all my cards on the table. I think we did a good job of that," Jordan explained.
With nothing left to do in the preliminary injunction hearing other than to await the judge's decision, which is expected to come by Friday, Jordan has flipped the switch in his head. He's onto Phoenix, and the six-time NBA Finals champion is looking forward to joining his team in hoisting their first Bill France Cup.
"I'm looking forward to winning a championship this weekend," Jordan stated confidently.
Toby Christie is the Editor-in-Chief of Racing America. He has 15 years of experience as a motorsports journalist and has been with Racing America since 2023.