During his storied NBA career, Michael Jordan was known to make up slights to fuel his incredible drive for greatness. Now that he is into car racing, Jordan still uses slights to motivate the people around him and his 23XI Racing team, as that’s what his co-team owner, Denny Hamlin, said.
With 19 Cup Series playoff appearances in 20 years of racing, Hamlin is regarded by many as the greatest NASCAR driver never to win a championship. And early this season, it looked like 2026 wasn’t going to be any different.
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But since finishing 4th in Kansas last April 19th, Hamlin has five Top 3 finishes in his last seven starts, including wins in each of the last three. After his latest win at Pocono, Hamlin credited a challenge from MJ for sparking his current form.
“I don’t remember exactly how it got brought up. It might have been talking about like adversity, like these races never go as planned. So what? Now what? What’s your next best move?” he said.
“It was right after all the bad stuff that have happened and he’s like ‘Yeah, I’m interested to see what Denny does. What does he do from last year? Does he respond or does he fold up (like a) tent?’ or something like that,” Hamlin said on the “Actions Detrimental” podcast. “So at that point I’m just back of the room (nodding his head)…Okay.”
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Denny had a rough 2025
Last year was a tough one for Denny as not only did he lose the Cup Series title in the last race of the season, he also lost his father, Dennis, to injuries sustained after a fire hit their North Carolina home last December. And so, heading to this campaign, Denny said it was hard to focus.
Then came that February meeting for 23XI, right before the season, when Jordan discussed expectations and goals for 2026. While in the middle of his speech, MJ somehow slighted Denny. Hamlin heard the message and took it to heart. And boy, Denny has been on a heater.
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“Sometimes things like that is all you need to fuel you. I’ve got enough fuel inside of me anyway. I’m a competitor, right? I love to compete, no matter what it is,” he added.
Denny is back in the thick of the title hunt
Denny had a slow start to 2026, but after winning at Pocono last weekend, he has now won the last three races of the season, marking the first time in his legendary NASCAR career that he has won three races in a row in the Cup Series. More importantly, he finds himself down by only 19 race points to his 23XI teammate, Tyler Reddick, who is currently ahead in the Drivers’ Standings.
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Like Hamlin, Redick also recently spoke about a Jordan jab where MJ told him to his face that he ‘sucked at superspeedways‘ a couple of years back. He said he took that as motivation and has since improved in that department. Tyler was also in that room last February when MJ spoke to 23XI. Curiously, Redick went on to win the first three races of the season.
MJ has always deflected credit for 23XI’s success this season, saying he’s just the owner. But hearing from his co-owner and top-performing driver this year, Jordan isn’t just the ordinary NASCAR boss. Not only has he won at the highest level, but he still remains competitive, and his edge is fueling the success of people around him.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Jun 18, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
