Ever thought about what it would be like to have Michael Jordan as your boss? Well, Bubba Wallace has gotten to experience that for a while now, having driven for Jordan’s 23XI Racing in NASCAR ever since the team was founded in 2020. Wallace was asked about working under Jordan on Casuals with Katie Nolan and spoke glowingly of him.
Katie Nolan: “What’s he like as a boss?”
Bubba Wallace: “Super cool, super laid back. Really fun to be around.”
Nolan: “All words people have said to describe Michael Jordan and working with him in the past. Laid back, chill. Doesn’t even really care.”
Wallace: “He’s not competitive at all.”
Nolan: “No.”
Wallace: “Honestly, just a genuine, down-to-earth, really good guy and loves racing. Has a really strong passion for NASCAR and motorsports and loves cars.”
In case it wasn’t obvious, Nolan and Wallace were joking around at first. Laidback is certainly not a word that was associated with Jordan during his NBA career. He was extremely competitive and was willing to do whatever it took to win.
That mindset contributed to Jordan winning six titles, six Finals MVPs, five MVPs, one DPOY, and 10 scoring titles in his career. Those accomplishments have led to him still being widely regarded as the greatest player of all time.
While Jordan had so much success as a player in the NBA, that didn’t prove to be the case when he was the owner of the Charlotte Hornets/Bobcats. He became the majority owner in 2010, and the team never even won a playoff series in 13 years under his leadership.
So, when it was announced that Jordan was becoming co-owner of a NASCAR team with Denny Hamlin, there were fears that he might not be a success there either. That’s not necessarily been the case, though.
23XI Racing driver Tyler Reddick won the NASCAR regular season championship in 2024. Reddick would even advance to the Championship 4 but would fall short in his quest to be named the NASCAR Cup Series champion. That title would go to Joey Logano instead.
Despite that disappointment, Jordan is already proving to be more successful as an owner in NASCAR than in the NBA. He started to be more active in managing 23XI Racing after selling his majority stake in the Hornets in 2023, and that certainly hasn’t hurt the team.
While Jordan is very passionate about racing, he knows what he is capable of and what he isn’t. Wallace, who has won three races with 23XI Racing, revealed his boss does not ride with him.
“He taught me that if you know you’re gonna go into something and lose, don’t participate,” Wallace stated. “… He’ll never get into a racecar and I’ll never go play basketball with him.”
Jordan famously tried his hand at baseball after his first retirement from the NBA in 1993. He wasn’t particularly good at it, though, and returned to the NBA in 1995. Whether that experience had an impact on him or not, Jordan isn’t interested in getting into anything now that he knows he might struggle with.
