A recent filing from 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports, as part of their ongoing antitrust lawsuit against NASCAR, provided fans with another glimpse into internal messages shared among NASCAR officials, including some jabs at a 23XI co-owner.
Late Wednesday night, 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports filed a response to NASCAR’s motion for summary judgment, which will be heard next Thursday.
If this case were to be decided by summary judgment, it would mean that the two teams would not have the opportunity to present their case to a jury.
In this response, the teams stated their reasons why the case should not be decided by summary judgment. Among these were talking points the teams have reiterated throughout this lawsuit, alongside a claim that this motion was “written exclusively for the press.”
However, the most eye-catching aspect of this response from the teams was the discovery of documents, emails, and text messages that they had obtained.
The emails and documents primarily involve a debate about the possibility of switching to the NASCAR Next Gen car versus maintaining a more bare-bones version of the Gen 6 car among NASCAR brass. This includes a document describing the Gen 7, or Next Gen car, as a “foundational IP [intellectual property] platform for NASCAR racing in the future.”
But, to some, the real meat of the matter was found in a text exchange between former NASCAR COO (and current President) Steve O’Donnell and Executive Vice President and Chief Venue and Racing Innovation Officer Ben Kennedy.
These texts emerged amid the PGA Tour’s early battles with rival series LIV Golf, which is funded by the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund. In the first text, O’Donnell expresses his fears that the then-ongoing 2025 NASCAR Charter Negotiations, should they fall through, could result in a similar scenario where a rival league, with substantial financial support, could step in and take over stock car racing.
O’Donnell says, “We need to lock ourselves in a room and war game this thing. The future of the sport is on the line, and we need to assume, unfortunately, that 30 of 36 drivers will leave us, and all owners will leave us.”
The longtime NASCAR exec then went on to say that he saw areas where NASCAR was exposed to a similar battle that the PGA was and is incurring. Saying that “my eyes were opened with the PGA and the teams. There is zero loyalty. We need to assume that nobody gives a shit – they don’t.”
Later in the text, O’Donnell mentions “Curtis,” saying this individual “doesn’t care one bit about this sport” and “just thinks the team should win” the negotiations:
“Curtis thinks we are dumb hillbillies. He is lecturing us on how tv deals work. I want to win and I know you do as well. It is personal now – we are up against a guy who doesn’t care one bit about this sport and he said it – let’s do what we think is right for this sport to succeed in the future. Bill France always said that everybody needs to win. Curtis just thinks team should win.” — Steve O’Donnell
In his response, Kennedy says he “agreed 100%” with O’Donnell’s ideas and he is “ready to dig into this one.”
Responding to this text shortly after, O’Donnell returns to “Curtis” saying that he “let Jim and Mike know it wasn’t a pleasant mtg and Curtis is a ‘knob’.”
Although it is unconfirmed, one could assume “Curtis” refers to 23XI co-owner Curtis Polk, a longtime business partner of fellow co-owner Michael Jordan, who is currently part of a countersuit, which lists Polk alongside the two teams as defendants, filed by NASCAR on March 5.
What’s Happening? Though the ongoing lawsuit between Michael Jordan’s 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports lawsuit with NASCAR is awaiting its…
As of now, the trial between these two parties is scheduled for December 1; however, they could settle prior to that date.
Although settling seems unlikely, if this case were to go to trial, more documents, emails, and text messages, similar to those from an August 18 hearing that NASCAR fans deemed rather stunning, would likely be released to the public.
Nonetheless, on October 6, NASCAR requested that the court order a settlement conference between itself and the two teams, which Judge Kenneth D. Bell granted and will oversee on October 21, but what the route to a settlement could look like is still unknown.
We have extensively covered all aspects of this lawsuit via the timeline linked below.
What’s Happening? The 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports lawsuit will continue for some time. However, many developments will occur along…
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