By: Zoe Morse, Staff Writer
On October 2nd, 2024, two NASCAR (National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing) teams, 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports, filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina.[i] The suit alleged that NASCAR and the France family had violated the Sherman Antitrust Act by maintaining a monopoly over stock car racing in the United States.[ii] Since its inception in 1948, NASCAR has been privately owned and controlled by William H.G. “Big Bill” France and his family.[iii]
Among the allegations in the lawsuit is that NASCAR has mandated racing teams to join charter agreements to guarantee participation in races during the regular season. Current charter agreements expired at the end of the 2024 season. The plaintiffs are the only two current NASCAR racing teams who have not signed charter agreements for the 2025 season. Additional allegations are that NASCAR has purchased premier racetracks, purchased lower stock car leagues, and mandated the use of the “NextGen” car to maintain its monopoly.[iv]
In their prayer for relief, plaintiffs asked for a declaratory judgment that NASCAR be found to have violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2. The plaintiff racing teams are also asking for a preliminary injunction that would release 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports from being forced into a 2025 charter agreement and damages from being forced to enter the charter from 2016 to 2024. 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports stated that while they did not sign the 2025 charter agreement, many other teams felt as though they had no choice but to sign if they wanted to stay in stock car racing. The teams stated that NASCAR has been abusing its power to impose economic terms on them that were less than they could have obtained in a competitive market.[v]
The lawsuit comes after more than two years of negotiations between racing teams and NASCAR. It was filed during the NASCAR “playoffs” with only several weeks of racing left for the 2024 season. When the lawsuit was filed, 23XI Racing’s No. 45 and 23 cars were in 9th and 19th place, respectively, in the driver standings. 23XI Racing was founded in 2020 by retired professional basketball player Michael Jordan and longtime NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin. Other professional sports teams in the United States have individual franchises. In response to the lawsuit, Mr. Jordan stated that the way NASCAR runs is unfair to the team, drivers, sponsors, and fans.[vi] In the complaint, the plaintiffs referred to NASCAR and the France family as monopolistic bullies.[vii]
NASCAR has filed a response to the complaint. In its answer, NASCAR rejected the plaintiff’s call for injunction relief, saying that it would cause harm to the 32 charter holders who signed the 2025 agreements. NASCAR stated that the complaint is more about increasing profits for the plaintiff racing teams rather than protecting competition. Additionally, NASCAR stated that the plaintiff teams willingly agreed to sign the section of the 2016 charter that released their antitrust rights and were represented by counsel when they did so.[viii] The last race of the 2024 NASCAR Cup season was held on November 8th, 2024.
In response, United States District Judge Kenneth Bell of the Western District of North Carolina granted a preliminary injunction on December 18th, 2024 in December that allowed 23XI and Front Row to receive the same rewards as a chartered team while the lawsuit continues.[ix] In January of 2025, Judge Bell denied NASCAR’s motion to dismiss. NASCAR filed an appeal on February 12th, 2025, approximately an hour before the start of qualifying for the Daytona 500, NASCAR’s first race of the season.[x] On March 5th, 2025 NASCAR filed a countersuit alleging Michael Jordan and his business partner Curtis Polk participated in anticompetitive behavior.[xi] Chris Yates, an attorney representing NASCAR, has stated that the parties will participate in court-required mediation proceedings but expects to go to trial in December.
[i] https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/nascar-monopoly-antitrust.pdf
[ii] https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-cup/news/23xi-and-frm-antitrust-lawsuit-injunction-nascar-discovery-charters/10661724/
[iii] https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/nascar-monopoly-antitrust.pdf
[iv] https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/nascar-monopoly-antitrust.pdf
[v] https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/nascar-fights-teams-injunction-bid-racing-antitrust-case-2024-10-24/
[vi] https://www.reuters.com/sports/michael-jordan-leads-nascar-antitrust-lawsuit-2024-10-02/
[vii] https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/02/sport/michael-jordan-racing-lawsuit-nascar-spt-intl/index.html
[viii] https://www.newsweek.com/sports/racing/nascar-issues-official-response-antitrust-lawsuit-injunction-verdict-1974196
[ix] https://www.newsweek.com/sports/racing/nascar-antitrust-lawsuit-judge-delivers-verdict-23xi-frm-injunction-after-appeal-2006399
[x] https://apnews.com/article/nascar-lawsuit-jordan-23xi-antitrust-daytona-500 e14b9f40fe260520409b41c29da0c7b8
[xi] https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-cup/news/nascar-countersues-23xi-and-frm-lawsuit-conspiracy-polk-jordan-hamlin-jenkins/10700665/