NASCAR star Denny Hamlin says Michael Jordan suing was a 'wake-up call' for racing series

Denny Hamlin believes that he and Michael Jordan suing NASCAR was a big wake-up call for the stock car racing series.

Hamlin and Jordan are two of the co-owners at 23XI Racing, who, along with Front Row Motorsports, filed a lawsuit against NASCAR in October 2024, alleging anticompetitive and monopolistic practices.

After a brutal 14-month legal battle, things came to a head in court on December 9 last year, with the two parties eventually reaching a settlement agreement on day nine.

Despite having settled, nobody was under any illusions that this was anything but a win for 23XI and FRM. Not only did they get a good chunk of cash, they also received the permanent charters that they and other Cup Series teams so craved.

NASCAR, on the other hand, had to deal with the PR disaster that came with being sued by the biggest athlete in the world and two of its own teams, as well as the embarrassment of several offensive internal messages going into the public domain. Former Commissioner Steve Phelps has since resigned.

NASCAR TODAY: Michael Jordan gets early birthday present as 23XI wins Daytona 500

Denny Hamlin on NASCAR 'wake-up call'

Speaking after Sunday's epic Daytona 500 that saw 23XI star Tyler Reddick and the team win their first Great American Race, Hamlin revealed that he believes that the lawsuit proved a wake-up call for the sport.

"I think December was a wake-up call. I think that the conversations since then have been a lot of self-reflection, in my opinion, from NASCAR about ... I think they would have done things differently had they had the opportunity to," Hamlin said in a press conference at Daytona International Speedway.

"But we knew that we needed to stick up for what we believed was right. I said all along, I was very confident for the last year because I knew what the facts were.

"But we have to now figure out how we can get the sport back where it was decades ago. In order to do that, the only way we can do it is we’re all going to have to pull the rope in the same direction."

NASCAR open to ideas

Continuing further, Hamlin added that he has had positive conversations with NASCAR executives since the trial, and that they were receptive to ideas about how the sport can be grown.

Ultimately, though, only time will tell if NASCAR backs up their words with action.

"Even conversations that I’ve had with NASCAR executives as late as a couple days ago, sitting in a bus talking about what do we need to be five years from now, two years from now, ten years from now? What does the sport need to look like?" Hamlin continued.

"Those were all really good conversations, and they were very open to suggestions.

"This is just a little different now. Now, the proof will be in what happens, right? Is there actions behind the words? But it seems like there’s more of a collaborative pull of the rope than what I’ve [seen], even since December.

"The team owner meetings were much more productive than what they’ve been really since I’ve been an owner, so it seems like they’re willing to make the changes that it needs to make the sport grow because we’re all going to be better when the sport grows. We’ve got to work really, really hard at it, but I think we can get there."

NASCAR STANDINGS: Tyler Reddick on top after Daytona 500, Joe Gibbs Racing star 37th