From Burt Reynolds to Michael Jordan: 12 Coolest Celebrities to Own NASCAR Teams

The late comedic actor joined forces with longtime friend and noted Hollywood stuntman and producer/director Hal Needham to form Mach 1 Racing in NASCAR Cup in 1981. While Reynolds would pretty much fade from view after the first three seasons, the organization would go on for nine seasons, winning nine races (all by NASCAR icon Harry Gant), before closing shop in 1990.

The NBA Hall of Famer and lifelong NASCAR fan began by co-owning Liberty Racing, a Truck Series team that included drivers such as current NASCAR star Kevin Harvick and the late Kenny Irwin, but that team lasted just three seasons (1997-99). This would eventually lead to Daugherty becoming part-owner of JTG Daugherty Racing with Tad and Jody Geschickter in 2008, a role Daugherty continues in today.

Armando Christian Perez, otherwise known as singer and rapper Pitbull, joined Justin Marks as co-owner of Trackhouse Racing in 2021. He's compared his journey to American superstardom and NASCAR team ownership to that one of the team’s drivers, Daniel Suarez. Suarez is of Mexican descent, while Pitbull, who was born and raised in Miami, is of Cuban descent.

The late country music legend, Marty Robbins, was a longtime NASCAR fan and eventually formed Robbins Racing as both owner and driver, competing in 35 Cup races with one top-5 finish. The team competed on a part-time basis from 1966 through 1982, when Robbins died December 8 of that year in Nashville at the age of 57.

NFL Hall of Famers and Dallas Cowboys legends Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman were co-owners of Hall of Fame Racing, which was founded in 2006 and lasted just two full-time seasons. The team was sold to Jeff Moorad and Tom Garfinkle after the 2007 season, and eventually closed its doors two years later.

NFL Hall of Famer Brett Favre became partners with NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Jarrett and formed Jarrett/Favre Motorsports in 1999, which competed part-time in the then-Busch Series. However, the partnership didn’t last long. When Rayovac ended sponsorship in 2001, the team folded shortly afterward.

Former NFL head coach Jerry Glanville competed in six NASCAR Busch Series races in 1992 and 1993 (with a best finish of 20th), as well as 27 Truck Series races from 1995 through 1999, with a best finish of 14th (three different times). Glanville also had a minority ownership share.

Joe Gibbs: the Pro Football Hall of Famer and former Super Bowl champion coach in the NFL actually was a hot rodder first before he got into the gridiron game, competing as a drag racer in Southern California growing up. He’d eventually start both a NASCAR Cup team, which continues to this day, as well as an NHRA drag racing team that competed in the early-to-mid 1990s.

The NFL Hall of Famer joined forces last year with up-and-coming driver and former U.S. Navy lieutenant Jesse Iwuji for a full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series operation that is expected to continue in 2023.

The legendary boxer co-owns The Money Team (aka TMT), which made four NASCAR Cup starts in 2022 with Kaz Grala behind the wheel for the first three races and IndyCar veteran Conor Daly making one start (the best finish for the team was 23rd, both by Grala in the Coca-Cola 600 and Daly in the Charlotte Roval race).

It is uncertain whether TMT will be back in 2023. Grala has signed to race full-time in the Xfinity Series for Sam Hunt Racing in 2023, and it’s unclear whether Daly will attempt any more Cup races for Mayweather's group.

The NBA Hall of Famer—and considered by many as the sport’s greatest player of all time—joined forces with longtime friend and veteran NASCAR star driver Denny Hamlin to form 23XI Racing late in 2020, and debuted as a full-time racing operation in 2021 with Bubba Wallace.

The team expanded to two cars in 2022 with Kurt Busch. Tyler Reddick will replace Busch for the 2023 season as Busch has chosen to essentially semi-retire and will compete on a sparing basis due to the severe concussion he suffered in July 2022 that forced him to miss the remainder of the season. And rumors persist that if an extension isn’t reached in the coming months, Hamlin’s current contract with Joe Gibbs Racing and FedEx will end after the upcoming season. If that happens, those same rumors insist the 42-year-old Hamlin may then race an additional year or two for 23XI Racing.

Famed comedians, the Wayan Brothers (Marlon, Keenan Ivory, Damon and Shawn), held a major press conference at Auto Club Speedway in September 2005, announcing they would be forming a NASCAR Cup team—called Star Motorsports—to compete the following season. Well, it turns out the joke was on NASCAR, as the brothers and their planned team never materialized.