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The basketball icon, introducing himself formally in a federal courtroom on Friday, admitted that his competitive side and novelty within the sport emboldened his effort with 23XI Racing to “challenge” Nascar over perceived violations of competition laws.

Team Investment and a Competitive Drive

The owner disclosed financial and corporate details of his 23XI team, revealing he put in $40m of his own funds into the Nascar Cup series team launched with business partner Curtis Polk and longtime driver Denny Hamlin.

“Someone had to step forward,” Jordan stated in the Charlotte courtroom. “I was a new person, I wasn’t afraid. I felt I could challenge Nascar in its entirety. I felt as far as the sport required examination from a different view.”

The Core Dispute: Franchise System and Renewal Demands

The heart of the case involves the expiration of a 2016 agreement where Nascar provided each team a “charter”. This system mirrors other professional sports with independent franchises, like the Charlotte Hornets or the Carolina Panthers. The agreement was set to expire in 2024 when Nascar insisted on teams renew their charters.

Jordan was on the witness stand for an hour and left the court to a media frenzy, with onlookers and reporters clamoring for a glimpse or a photo of the sports legend.

Spearheading the Fight

Jordan’s 23XI is leading the full-court press along with another racing team for Nascar to change a business model Jordan said is breaking the law to maintain excessive control.

For Jordan and and a fellow team representative, who testified before Jordan, are details from September 2024. Gibbs described a frantic and emotional period where the racing circuit informed teams they must sign a charter agreement extension. This agreement consists of 112 pages outlining pay for chartered teams and a guaranteed spot in Nascar-sponsored races.

A Refusal to Sign

Jordan said that his team and its ally decided their sole viable path was to refuse a signature that extensive document and take the issue to court. The other 13 organizations agreed to the terms.

The team owners reached out to Nascar about possible changes or extension options. Nascar wasn’t talking, according to his testimony.

The Ultimate Motivation: Winning

But in the end, the pushback against what he saw as a financially unsustainable model was driven by the familiar goal for Jordan: Success.

“Hamlin persuaded me getting a third driver boosted our odds of winning,” he testified, sharing that he bought a third charter late in 2024 for $28 million despite the uncertainty. “So I dove in.”

Account from the Gibbs Family

Gibbs described her request for permanent charters, submitted in a written letter to Nascar. She said the timing of the signature deadline didn’t sit well.

According to her, the team founder first attempted to call and talk Nascar out of forcing signatures, but CEO Jim France declined the request.

“Please don’t force this on us,” Heather Gibbs said Joe Gibbs told Nascar’s executives. The response was, “If I wake up and I have 20 charters, that’s what I have. If I have 30, that’s the number.”