For fans of Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin’s 23XI Racing, the roar of engines at Daytona is a little more hushed now. What started as a splashy sports crossover in 2021, with a basketball icon transplanting his winning ways and celebrity into stock car racing, has become a tumultuous spin. The shimmering spotlight 23XI was operating under has faded to black, as courtroom drama overshadows podium finishes and fans are left wondering if Jordan’s dream of NASCAR dominance is running out of fuel.

23XI Racing has symbolized ambition and fresh energy in the Cup Series for four seasons. Possessing a three-driver line-up of Tyler Reddick, Bubba Wallace, and Riley Herbst with eight wins from 143 Cup starts, the team has had moments of promise, like Tyler Reddick winning the regular season championship and making the Championship Four in 2024. But its current run has been defined by inconsistency and increasing pressure.

The most recent legal wrinkles, Judge Kenneth Bell’s rejection of the request to throw out NASCAR’s counterclaim, and the specter of the charters being taken away have cast a dark cloud over the team’s future. Now, its fans are witnessing what passes for the reality check for this organization that promised to upend the status quo.

As fans respond with a complex blend of frustration, loyalty, and worry, the story of 23XI is becoming less about Jordan’s celebrity and more about the grit it takes to make it in one of America’s most competitive sports. That’s a brutal reminder of how unforgiving fortunes can be in motorsport, where an unstable tangle of business, politics, and performance can define a season. These recent tough times for 23XI are not simply about lap times or pit stops, but about which direction the team is heading in.

Fans react to 23XI’s surprising form

The NASCAR world is never short of opinions, and the struggles of 23XI Racing have provoked a strong reaction online. Fans on Reddit and social media hive-minds devour every twist, from the team’s on-track performance to the legal drama playing out in courtrooms. While the lawsuit drama that started back in September 2023, it took on a new role with charters being pulled into the frame, and it seems like 23XI is not able to outperform their OEM compatriots amidst all this.

“Kind of wild that Legacy has looked overall better than 23XI the last few weeks to a month, especially,” one fan noted, a surprising decline of form for a team with Michael Jordan on board. The contrast with Legacy Motor Club has led many fans to scratch their heads, asking whether 23XI’s ambitious growth has overreached its resources. The last race for 23XI Racing at Pocono saw all of their drivers suffer brake failures in what was a bizarre outing for the team. Meanwhile, Erik Jonest (13th) and John Hunter Nemechek (6th)of LMC both got top-15 finishes! A deeper look into the statistics shows the contrasting paths of these teams.

Legacy Motor Club was a backmarker team for most of the 2024 season, with Jimmie Johnson and co. struggling to keep pace with the rest of the grid without technical alliance from any other Toyota shop. Meanwhile, 23XI’s Toyotas were shining with Joe Gibbs Racing’s alliance. But in 2025, JGR is flying, and so is LMC, while 23XI has not been able to match last season’s prowess.

So far this season, LMC has three top-5 and nine top-10 finishes, smashing last season’s numbers of just one top-5 finish. 23XI, on the other hand, does have impressive stats with six top-5s and eleven top-10s, but it pales in comparison to 18 top-5s and 35 top-10s achieved in 2024, showing LMC’s growth over the Michael Jordan-led outfit.

Another fan suggested that the lawsuit could be a distraction: “The drop off has been so significant, I’m thinking the lawsuit has caused distractions from top to bottom. In terms of the 45, you can almost bank on it that they’ll completely ruin their race in stage two or three every single week.” This fan feels the legal battle with NASCAR is draining team morale and focus, making the ability to race at its best even more taxing. Especially with their charters not secured for the near future, fan sentiment is that the team is struggling to finish races, epitomized by Tyler Reddick‘s inconsistent finishes after strong starts.

One fan pointed out how critical it is for 23XI Racing to win, with fringe playoff drivers like Chase Briscoe securing a spot at Pocono last week. They wrote, “The Reason why Briscoe winning last week gave me so much relief as a fan. So many great drivers/teams haven’t won yet. The competition is only going to get harder.” Now, after the Quaker State 400, a 12th new winner was crowned in Chase Elliott, leaving 23XI in a precarious position of possibly having to point their way into the playoffs or miss out entirely.

And then there are the comparisons to Trackhouse, another high-profile team: “Crazy that Trackhouse has 2 wins and 23XI has 0. Obviously, 23XI as a whole is doing better, though.” Well, win and you’re in is real, whether we like it or not, and Trackhouse Racing has figured out the formula of making the playoffs with Ross Chastain winning the Coca-Cola 600 and road course wizard Shane van Gisbergen winning in Mexico City. While 23XI Racing has been more consistent than Trackhouse, a team that was nowhere up to speed at the start of the season, Justin Marks’ team has turned it around, while 23XI continues to search for that elusive checkered flag.

On social platforms, the mood is both deflated and hopeful. Still others are openly critical, wondering whether Michael Jordan and the team’s management have anything that can turn this around. If anything, the uproar proves just how much fans care and just how much is on the line when a legend’s reputation is at stake. Do you think 23XI Racing can turn their season around? Let us know in the comments!