NASCAR countersues 23XI and Front Row in dispute over charters

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — NASCAR on Wednesday filed a counterclaim against Michael Jordan-owned 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports for “willfully” violating antitrust laws by orchestrating anticompetitive collective conduct in connection with the most recent charter agreements.

23XI and Front Row were the only two teams out of 15 that refused to sign the new agreements, which were presented to the teams last September in a take-it-or-leave-it offer a mere 48 hours before the start of NASCAR's playoffs.

The charters are NASCAR's version of a franchise and guarantee 36 of the 40 spots in each week's field to the teams that hold them, as well as other financial incentives. 23XI and Front Row sued, alleging NASCAR and the France family that owns the stock car series are a monopoly.

NASCAR already has lost one round in court in which the two teams have been recognized as chartered organizations for the 2025 season as the legal dispute winds through the courts.

In the counterclaim filed Wednesday — which names Curtis Polk, Jordan's longtime agent, as a defendant — NASCAR said “the undisputed reality is that it is 23XI and FRM, led by 23XI’s owner and sports agent Curtis Polk, that willfully violated the antitrust laws by orchestrating anticompetitive collective conduct in connection with the terms of the 2025 Charter Agreements.”

“This is not the first time that 23XI and FRM have sought to impose their viewpoints, and those of their counsel, on the racing teams writ large,” NASCAR continued. “And it is truly ironic that in trying to blow-up the Charter system, 23XI and FRM have sought to weaponize the antitrust laws to achieve their goals.”

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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing