Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin to present NASCAR Cup Series team
Legendary Michael Jordan announced on Monday night that he will be presenting a car in the NASCAR Cup Series competition for the 2021 season, alongside driver Denny Hamlin.
Jordan will be the main owner of the car, while Hamlin will participate as a minority partner and continue to drive the No.11 with Joe Gibbs Racing.
The chosen driver to drive Jordan and Hamlin's car will be Bubba Wallace, the only African American currently in NASCAR competition.
"Bubba has improved since joining the Cup series and we believe he is ready to take his career to the next level," wrote Hamlin in a statement released by the driver on his social media.
Jordan, for his part, recalled his childhood passion for NASCAR racing and now it was time to fully participate in the competition.
"Growing up in North Carolina, my parents took my brothers, sisters and me to races, and I have been a NASCAR fan my whole life. The opportunity to own my own racing team in partnership with my friend Denny Hamlin, and to have Bubba Wallace driving for us, is very exciting for me," Jordan also explained through his social media.
Jordan also emphasized that until now NASCAR had been closed to minority participation, but that now was the right time to make real changes and give opportunities for more African Americans to enter the racing competition.
Wallace announced earlier this month that he would be leaving Richard Petty Motorsports after the 2020 season. He was in the last season of his contract with RPM.
"This is a unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I believe fits very well for me at this point in my career," he wrote on social media. "I am grateful and honored that they believe in me and I am very excited to start this adventure with them."
Wallace has not won a Cup race during his three seasons with the RPM team, and this season he has achieved his best results by finishing in the top 10 in five races.
But he currently ranks twenty-third in the NASCAR Cup Series standings, which is the best since he joined the competition.
Wallace gained national attention over the past few months as an activist for racial equality and for promoting the ban on the Confederate flag during NASCAR races. EFE