After winning the 2025 Xfinity Series championship, Jesse Love is preparing for one of the most defining mental resets of his young NASCAR career, and he’s looking to none other than NBA legend Michael Jordan for inspiration.

Speaking during an interview, Love opened up about the evolving sources of his competitive fire, revealing a deeper, more personal side of what fuels him behind the wheel.

Jesse Love Leans on Michael Jordan’s Champion Mentality

The 20-year-old phenom admitted that much of his motivation this past season came from chasing and trying to outperform fellow rising star Connor Zilisch. With Zilisch moving up to the Cup Series and running only limited Xfinity races next year, Love now finds himself without the primary benchmark he quietly used to push his limits.

Love explained in the interview with Eric Estepp, “When Connor’s gone next year, he’s going to still run some Xfinity, but for the most part, when he’s gone, I’m going to have to, I guess, kind of find that new motivation. And I haven’t really figured out 100% what that is going to be yet because I don’t know. I’m not going to force anything.”

Love’s honesty highlighted a fundamental truth about elite athletes: motivation isn’t constant; it evolves over time. For him, Zilisch unknowingly filled that role this year. “But everybody has their own, I guess, piece of motivation that, you know, like when they really don’t want to do something, they do it anyway because of X, right?” he said.

But with that “X” now moving on, Love is turning to the mentality of one of sports’ most iconic competitors, Jordan. He explained how the NBA star’s philosophy of delivering greatness for fans deeply resonated with him.

“For Michael Jordan, it was, you know, I think his was always like the fans pay all this money to see somebody extraordinary play. I’m gonna be that guy,” said Love. “For me, you know, this year it was trying to beat somebody. And that was, you know, for the most part, I haven’t really told him this, but for the most part it was Connor, right? And next year, I don’t know what my motivations, necessarily going to be yet.”

Now, as Love prepares for next season without his former measuring stick, he’s aiming to channel Jordan’s unwavering commitment to excellence, showing up every single day ready to be fierce, regardless of his competitors or circumstances.