"His Airness" Michael Jordan's 1993 ZR-1 Is Going To The Corvette Museum

Let's say, hypothetically, that you've worked your butt off and become the greatest player that the sport of basketball has ever seen. You have redefined athlete endorsements and become one of the most famous faces on the planet, becoming a very wealthy person in the process. What kind of car would you buy to celebrate your team's third title in three years? Would it be a 1993 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1? Because that's exactly what Michael Jordan bought. This gorgeous Ruby Red 40th Anniversary model with matching leather interior once belonged to the balling legend, and now it's on display as part of the National Corvette Museum's exhibition Pop Culture and Corvette: An American Love Affair. 

Like Jordan, the ZR-1 was a show of force in 1993, with Chevrolet proving that it could still build performance cars that beat the entire world. With help from Lotus and Mercury Marine, the extra-wide ZR-1's LT5 engine made an incredibly impressive 405 horsepower that year. Because the Corvette began its journey in 1953, Chevrolet built a limited number of 40th Anniversary (option RPO Z25) edition examples, each painted and stitched in the fetching metallic merlot red. While this Ruby Red isn't quite a match for the Chicago Bulls red, I'm willing to give MJ a pass. 

The Jordan Air Force ZR-1 is now featured in a place of honor within the National Corvette Museum's iconic Skydome feature. I think this car is the one that really set Chevrolet and the Corvette performance team on the path that led to the current world-beating ZR1X and its 1,250 horsepower hybrid powertrain. Without this thirst for American speed and power, and the innovative engine powering the original ZR-1, perhaps Corvette would have ridden off into the sunset by now instead of whooping up on Ferraris—unequivocally the Larry Bird 1992 Celtics of cars. 

At 6-foot-6, Michael Jordan isn't exactly a short guy, but he loved to fold himself into a wide variety of sports cars over the years, collecting a lot of the best sports cars of the modern era. Not only does the guy co-own a NASCAR team (seen above celebrating driver Tyler Reddick's 2026 Daytona 500 victory), but he's previously owned an AMA Superbike race team, as well. He's clearly got a penchant for fast machines and exciting racing.  

Jordan has a long history with Corvette, as a matter of fact. The NBA phenom's first major endorsement deal during his 1984 NBA Rookie season was with a Chicago-area Chevrolet dealer. In return for doing some commercial work for the dealership, the company gave the then-21-year-old MJ a silver C4 Corvette. Seattle SuperSonics point guard Gary Payton once tried to trash-talk Jordan by saying he could afford the same flashy cars that Jordan drove. MJ's reply shut Gary up pretty quick: "The cars I got are just like yours, except mine were free."

According to GQ Magazine, Jordan's collection also includes a one-of-twelve Bugatti Veyron Sang Noir (Black Bloods), a McLaren-Mercedes SLR 722, a variety of Aston Martins, and more Porsches than you can count (including the last-of-the-Mezgers 997-generation GT3 RS 4.0 and GT2 RS). Many of his cars have gone on to inspire design cues for his line of Jordan shoes, drawing inspiration from a 911 Turbo Slant Nose, a Ferrari 550 Maranello, and a Bentley Continental GT. 

With a net worth deep into the billions, Jordan can pretty much afford to buy whatever car he wants whenever he wants it. The long-retired NBA all-star still reportedly earns over $275 million annually and is believed to be the wealthiest athlete of all time. If you want to have a big car collection, be like Mike. 

"To be able to have something that was involved with him and his career, and to bring that into this pop culture exhibition, is really, really exciting for us," museum Marketing Director Ryan Eichler told the Bowling Green Daily News.

The Pop Culture exhibit that features the ZR-1 once owned by Jordanruns from now through spring 2027 and features Corvettes that have made their mark on mainstream non-automotive audiences. This car fits the bill not only because of its famous owner, but at least in part because it made a cameo appearance in ESPN's 2020 documentary series, "The Last Dance," which chronicled the legend of Jordan and the 1990s Chicago Bulls dynasty. 

In addition to Jordan's ZR-1, the exhibit features a myriad of other Corvettes from television, movies, video games, and examples owned by other famous figures. According to the NCM website, this includes the 1959 Stingray race car driven by Elvis in the movie Clambake, Transformers Sideswipe and Crosshairs, the car from the Hawaii Five-0 reboot, astronaut Jim Lovell's Corvette, and the 2013 Gran Turismo Concept unveiled at SEMA. Also included is a display of various Corvette-inspired guitars throughout the years. 

This sounds like a pretty fun exhibit, and if you're going to be in the Bowling Green area at any time this year or early next year, make it a point to stop in and check it out. This is, without a doubt, one of my favorite automotive museums in the country, and I'm not even much of a Corvette guy myself. If you go into it with an open mind, you'll see quite a lot of historical context for why the Corvette became such a legend, who helped shape the cars, and how the Corvette became the symbol of Americanness. Every time I attend one of these exhibits, I'm blown away at their level of presentation and information.