NASCAR will appeal the injunction decision and request a bond and an immediate partial stay.
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The preliminary injunction granted to 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports will be appealed by NASCAR.
However, NASCAR has also filed other motions related to the injunction in addition to the appeal. The first is requesting an urgent motion to partially stay the injunction while the appeal is being heard.
The second is for the teams to post an injunction bond.The teams “would not face substantial harm because the continued enforcement of a partial stay would address each of Plaintiffs’ irreparable harm allegations,” NASCAR argued in its request for the stay pending appeal, that they “are likely to succeed on appeal” and “suffer irreparable harm without a stay of the Court’s decision,” and that “the public interest supports a partial stay, as this Court’s preliminary injunction forces NASCAR into unwanted contractual relationship with Plaintiffs.”
The preliminary injunction to race as charter teams was granted to 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports on December 18, with the statement that the release clause is unenforceable. Additionally, the decision stated that NASCAR could not refuse each team’s purchase of a charter from Stewart-Haas Racing, which would be utilized for the third team each organization adds. In response to the notion that they will probably win on appeal, NASCAR claims that the teams never brought up the problems in their complaint and that it was never given the opportunity to raise the concerns regarding those purchases. Additionally, NASCAR claims that it is against Fourth Circuit precedent to allow the teams to field their two cars without the release clause.
And this Court’s conclusion that the Charter’s release clause is probably illegal is based on a misinterpretation of that clause, which Plaintiffs’ counsel has confirmed does not operate prospectively. Retrospective releases of antitrust claims do not, by themselves, amount to Sherman Act violations, as numerous cases attest.
The argument that approving the teams’ charter sales to Stewart-Haas Racing will cause irreversible harm to NASCAR is related to this. In contrast to the preliminary injunction, this will extend it beyond the 2025 season. The trial will take place prior to the 2026 season if the lawsuit cannot be resolved by the parties.
Finally, according to NASCAR, this motion needs to be handled urgently because 23XI Racing and Front Row stated that the charter deals with Stewart-Haas Racing needed to be finalized by December 20. Furthermore, neither team plans to postpone their closing.
In order to guarantee future reimbursement of prize money (from racing as charter teams) in the event that NASCAR prevails, 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports have moved to post an injunction bond. The bond’s amount was sealed.
