23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports Lose Legal Battle Against NASCAR
A federal judge rejected the request from 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports to continue competing with their licenses while litigating against NASCAR in court. The teams argue that this situation puts their economic viability at risk. The decision means that the six cars from the teams will compete as open participants this weekend in Dover, next week in Indianapolis, and possibly for longer. U.S. District Judge Kenneth Bell denied the teams’ request for a temporary restraining order, arguing that they will be able to participate in the races in the coming weeks and will not lose their drivers or sponsors before his decision on a preliminary injunction. Bell left open the possibility of reconsidering her decision if circumstances change in the next two weeks. After this weekend, the affected cars might have to be classified by speed if 41 participants register, a possibility now that starting positions have opened. 23XI, co-owned by NBA legend Michael Jordan, and FRM filed their federal lawsuit against NASCAR last year after being the only two organizations out of 15 to reject NASCAR’s license extension offer. The trial is scheduled for December 1st, but the two teams are fighting to be recognized as license holders for the current season, which has 16 races left. A license guarantees one of the 40 grid positions each week, in addition to a base amount of money paid weekly. Jordan and FRM owner Bob Jenkins won a court order to recognize 23XI and FRM as license holders for the season, but the decision was overturned on appeal earlier this month, returning the case to Bell. Denny Hamlin, three-time Daytona 500 winner, co-owns 23XI with Jordan and stated that they were prepared to send Tyler Reddick, Bubba Wallace, and Riley Herbst to the track each week as open teams. They requested the restraining order on Monday, alleging that through discovery they learned that NASCAR planned to immediately begin the process of selling the six licenses, which would put “the plaintiffs in irreparable danger of not recovering their licenses and going bankrupt.”Participating in the race won’t be a problem this weekend in Dover, as fewer than the maximum 40 cars have entered. But if 41 cars showed up at any point this season, someone with slower performance would be eliminated, which would mean a loss of income and a missed opportunity to earn points in the standings. Reddick was the regular season champion last year and competed for the Cup Series championship in the season finale. But none of the six drivers affected by the court decision are assured for this year’s playoffs.“This is a fair and significant fear; however, NASCAR has agreed that ‘it will not sell any licenses before the court can rule on the plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction’,” Ball wrote. “Similarly, the plaintiffs fear that denying them guaranteed entry to the grid for the upcoming races could negatively affect their competitive position, including their ability to earn a place in the playoffs. Once again, legitimate, potentially irreparable damage. However, similarly to the sale of licenses, NASCAR represents to the court that all the plaintiffs’ cars will qualify (if they choose to compete) for the races in Dover and Indianapolis that will take place during the next 14 days”.
Judge Kenneth Bell
