NASCAR World and Denny Hamlin Respond to the New Anti-Trust Lawsuit Development of 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports for.
Perhaps the most significant development in 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports’ lawsuit against NASCAR to date occurred on Tuesday.
All three of 23XI’s and Front Row’s Cup Series vehicles will be eligible to compete as chartered entries. It will be possible to buy the charters that Stewart-Haas Racing previously owned.
When the news broke, Denny Hamlin, co-owner of 23XI Racing and driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, didn’t hold back and made sure his ecstatic response was shared on social media as soon as possible.
Lawyer Jeffrey Kessler, the representative for 23XI and FRM during the case, issued a statement of his own.
“We welcome today’s decision by Judge Bell granting a preliminary injunction in our favor,” Kessler said. “The court’s ruling allows 23XI and Front Row Motorsports to race existing cars as chartered teams in next year’s Cup Series. The decision also requires NASCAR to approve both teams’ purchases of a third charter from Stewart-Haas Racing and allow these cars to also race as chartered teams in the 2025 season.
We are confident in the strength of our case and will continue to fight so that racing can thrive and become a more competitive and fair sport in ways that benefit teams, drivers, sponsors and, most importantly, our fans.”“The Court finds that NASCAR possesses monopoly/monopsony power in the relevant marker, which is the market for premier stock car racing teams in the United States. NASCAR’s Cup Series is the only premier stock car racing series in the United States, and premier stock car racing is a distinct form of automobile racing with unique cars and highly specialized racing teams for which other motorsports like Formula 1 and IndyCar are not substitutes. Therefore, NASCAR fully controls which race teams can compete at the highest level of stock car racing – effectively, it has a 100 percent market share.”
The news regarding 23XI and Front Row fielding chartered entries for 2025 is also big news for their drivers. Both Bubba Wallace and Corey Heim were reportedly seeking answers as to whether 23XI would be a chartered team in 2025, as if it wasn’t, other teams could’ve stepped in to sign them.
However, the ruling means all drivers for both teams appear to be safe. It also means that Zane Smith, the likely candidate for the third Front Row Motorsports entry, would be signed by a team guaranteed to be chartered in 2025.
Wednesday’s decision is a major win for 23XI and Front Row, and is by far the biggest outcome of the trial so far.
