For the past several months, NASCAR has been locked in a bitter courtroom battle with two of its own teams—Denny Hamlin’s 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports (FRM). It all began when those teams sued NASCAR, alleging that the sanctioning body’s charter system amounted to a monopolistic practice in violation of antitrust laws. NASCAR responded by filing its own counterclaims, and the litigation has since devolved into a cycle of suits and counter‑suits.
The latest twist: NASCAR has asked the court’s permission to amend its counterclaim after uncovering what it describes as “new evidence” buried in roughly 200,000 pages of emails, texts, and internal memoranda. In its proposed amendment, the sport accuses 23XI and FRM of conspiring behind the scenes to force NASCAR into more favorable charter agreements—a direct rebuttal to the teams’ argument that each franchise could, and should, negotiate individually.
Not content to limit their case to NASCAR’s internal workings, Hamlin and FRM have issued subpoenas to several major sports leagues—including the NFL, NBA, NHL, and Formula 1—seeking detailed data on how those organizations split revenues with their teams. Their goal is to perform a “yardstick” comparison, highlighting how open competition in other leagues contrasts with NASCAR’s allegedly exclusionary charter model. The NFL has already pushed back, refusing to turn over its confidential financial information to one of its most frequent legal adversaries.
Meanwhile, fans and armchair analysts on Reddit have weighed in with a mix of bewilderment and schadenfreude. One commenter admitted confusion over NASCAR’s latest legal maneuver, wondering if the sport’s true aim is to prove that 23XI/FRM never intended to negotiate at all, but only to stall until they could sue. Another speculated that NASCAR is clutching at straws, pointing to an alleged email from front‑office executive Curtis Polk urging teams to band together for better terms.
The prevailing sentiment is that NASCAR is on shaky ground. “They’re desperate,” writes one user, predicting that an owner with seemingly limitless resources—and a reputation for tenacity—could ultimately prevail. Others recall an attempted team unionization effort in the 1970s, quashed by threats from Bill France Sr., suggesting that NASCAR’s fierce defense of its charter system is driven by a fear of losing control. With neither side willing to back down, this legal saga shows no signs of ending anytime soon.
Fans Warn NASCAR Against Denny Hamlin as France Family Digs Their Own Grave with ‘Desperate’ Accusations
