Judge Decides 23XI Racing And Front Row Motorsports Must Run As Open Cars As NASCAR Lawsuit Continues
Michael Jordan’s 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports have technically lost their NASCAR Cup Series charters and will have to qualify their way into upcoming races, a U.S. District Court judge in North Carolina has decided.
The teams are suing NASCAR over the most recent charter agreement with its teams on antitrust grounds, but had requested a temporary restraining order that would allow them to continue to operate as chartered teams as the lawsuit works its way through the court. It was initially granted, but later revoked and the teams have now lost their appeal.
That means the three-car teams will have to operate as open entries, which doesn’t guarantee them spots in the races and will result in smaller payouts than they would get as chartered teams.
Both have filed for an injunction that was denied and is under appeal, but Judge Kenneth Bell noted that the upcoming races have fewer entries than spots on the grid, so he doesn’t see the suspension of the charter status causing irreparable harm, but would consider it if that situation changes before a ruling on the injunction.
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NASCAR has also agreed not to reassign the charters until the injunction is ruled on. NASCAR originally issued the charters for free when the system was started in 2016, but teams can resell them and prices have risen to as much as $40 million, according to reports. 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports are not automatically entitled to any compensation if the charters are revoked.
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23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace currently have enough points to qualify for the playoffs, and would be allowed to compete as open entries. Neither has a win that would guarantee a spot with six races to go, but Reddick likely has enough points to secure an entry. Front Row Motorsports does not have any drivers above the playoffs cutline.
A trial for the main lawsuit is scheduled to start after the 2025 NASCAR season on Dec. 1.