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[Saba Sports News] Michael Jordan, after over a decade without major success as an NBA owner, has achieved his first championship in NASCAR just four years after co-founding 23XI Racing with Denny Hamlin in 2020. Their driver, Tyler Reddick, clinched the NASCAR Cup Series regular season championship, marking a significant milestone for the team.
Reddick led his closest competitor, Kyle Larson, by 17 points heading into the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. Despite battling a severe stomach bug during the race, Reddick managed to finish 10th, securing the championship by just one point. With 2 wins, 11 top-5s, and 18 top-10s, Reddick now enters the playoffs as the third seed.
Meanwhile, his teammate Bubba Wallace, who started on the pole, missed out on a playoff spot after a wreck late in the race left him finishing 16th.
Jordan, reflecting on Reddick’s gritty performance, compared it to his own “Flu Game” from the 1997 NBA Finals. “I know what it feels like to be sick and trying to perform,” Jordan said, expressing pride in Reddick’s effort.
When asked about 23XI Racing’s success in securing the regular season championship, Jordan stated, “We’re coming. We’ve got the right team. These guys bust their a** all season. I’m proud of the team, and we’ve just got to keep striving.”
Despite mixed emotions due to the contrasting fortunes of their two drivers, Jordan emphasized the need for continued improvement and expressed optimism about the team’s future. He acknowledged that selling his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets to focus more on 23XI Racing has proven to be the right move. Now, all eyes are on Reddick as he aims to secure the NASCAR Cup Series championship.