NASCAR Cup Darlington
Michael Jordan backs Denny Hamlin: 'You boo him, that makes him better'
Michael Jordan praised Denny Hamlin ahead of the Goodyear 400.
Alex Harrington
Edited: Apr 19, 2025, 2:57 PM
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Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Photo by: Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images
NBA legend and NASCAR team co-owner Michael Jordan commented on his partner Denny Hamlin ahead of Sunday's Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway. Comparing himself to the driver, Jordan admits that "his competitive juice is no different than mine."
Jordan, currently estimated to have a net worth of $3.5 billion according to Forbes, partnered with Hamlin to start 23XI Racing, a team which now boasts three talented drivers in Bubba Wallace, Tyler Reddick, and Riley Herbst. During Fox's pre-race coverage at Darlington last weekend, Jordan discussed Hamlin with Jamie Little.
"He is a clown, but that's him," Jordan said with a smile. "That's Denny. He's a very confident driver. He is a very confident person. His competitive juice is no different than mine."
This comes off Hamlin's victory at Martinsville, where he outdrove Christopher Bell and Bubba Wallace to his 56th career win after starting fifth. Upon taking the chequered flag, the driver unravelled a flag that read, "11 Against the World."
"I mean, I love that he's gotten back to winning and, you know, he wants - I want him to win a championship so badly because I think he's earned that, you know, because of what he's done for the sport for so long. And he's gonna grind it out.
"That's just the way Denny is and if you boo him, that makes him better. You know, you boo me, that makes me better. I mean, that's just the nature of a good competitor."
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Photo by: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Following Hamlin's win, the driver spoke about his performance.
“There’s two people I really love right now: my pit crew and Kyle Larson," he joked. “Had a little assist there, so thank you. The pit crew just did an amazing job.
"They won it last week [at Martinsville]. They won it this week. It’s all about them.
"Thanks Sport Clips. They have such a big deal here in Darlington, South Carolina ... We'll see you at Victory Lane."
With only four laps before the chequered flag, a caution flag was dropped after Kyle Larson's #4 car was spun by Wallace. Hamlin was able to capitalise on this, taking his second Cup Series win of the season.
As reported by Jeff Gluck of The Athletic, Larson's crew chief Cliff Daniels said his driver felt bad after his involvement in the crash:
"We didn't catch Kyle Larson before he left, but Cliff Daniels said Kyle told him he felt bad about being part of the last caution. They were trying to stay out of the way of the leaders and stay low, and Larson checked up early to make sure he didn't get into Reddick, but Bubba didn't know Larson was going to slow down that much."
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