
NASCAR is officially moving forward with an appeal to the Fourth Circuit in Richmond, Virginia over a district judge’s decision to grant 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports charter status this season concurrent to suing the sanctioning body on antitrust grounds.
Judge Kenneth D. Bell of the Western District of North Carolina decided last month to force NASCAR to recognize 23XI and Front Row as if they held ownership charters upon showing evidence to prove imminent harm if that injunctive relief was not issued.
Specifically, the teams showed that drivers and sponsors intended to opt-out of their contracts if the teams were not chartered. NASCAR rejected that conclusion on principal and will appeal it on legal grounds to the Fourth Circuit.
NASCAR has indicated that it will not seek to overturn the guaranteed starting spot recognition but will appeal being forced to pay the two teams the money associated with a charter the teams did not agree to terms to. That is why it is asking for oral arguments on May 15, well after the season ended.
It hopes to reach a decision in its favor before having to pay the two teams at the end of the season. NASCAR says the May 15 date has been agreed upon by the teams as well.
From the filing:
The fact that this appeal arises from a preliminary injunction is reason enough to prioritize it when scheduling cases for this Court’s May 15, 2025 sitting. But there are additional grounds to expedite oral argument here. The injunctions have sweeping implications for NASCAR’s upcoming 2025 Cup Series season, as they grant Plaintiffs guaranteed race spots and millions in revenue payments from NASCAR.
Pursuant to the 2025 Charter terms, those funds would have otherwise been used by NASCAR for the growth and promotion of the sport. The district court’s orders thus impact Charter teams and other NASCAR stakeholders alike by reducing the prize money, race purses, and promotional opportunities for teams, disrupting financial and strategic planning for the upcoming season. These orders also decrease the opportunities for “open teams” to participate in the 2025 Cup Series season. And these orders harm NASCAR by forcing it to partner with and redirect investments to teams that, in NASCAR’s view, do not share its interest in growing the Cup Series.
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Matt Weaver is a Motorsports Insider for Sportsnaut. Follow him on Twitter.