NASCAR President on 23XI and FRM Lawsuit: “We’re Still Not Sure What They’re Even Asking For”

What’s Happening?

During a recent interview, NASCAR President Steve O’Donnell claimed that NASCAR still doesn’t know what 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports are seeking in their lawsuit.

On Oct. 2, 2024, 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports sued NASCAR on antitrust grounds following months of difficult charter negotiations. With a trial date set for December, the first anniversary of this lawsuit draws ever closer.

Throughout the highs and lows of this lawsuit, including battles for charter eligibility, countersuits, and appeals, several key players have emerged, some obvious to fans of the sport and some less outstanding. These include Denny Hamlin, Curtis Polke, a co-owner of 23XI Racing, and NASCAR CEO Jim France.

Of course, NASCAR’s new President, Steve O’Donnell, who took his post in March during the heat of the lawsuit, is not lost amongst the shuffle. During a recent interview with Eric Estepp of Out of the Groove, the 56-year-old veteran NASCAR Executive was asked if he thought NASCAR saw potential for a resolution prior to the impending trial date.

In response, O’Donnell said he “can’t get into the specifics,” but he wanted to remind Estepp and the audience that the teams sued NASCAR and that “We’re still not sure what they’re even asking for, candidly in terms of an outcome.”

“It’s important that I think everyone knows, the team sued us, right? We didn’t ask for this. We’re still not sure what they’re even asking for, candidly, in terms of an outcome. What we’ve seen really doesn’t have anything to do with why the lawsuit was brought.” — Steve O’Donnell

While it may make him and even NASCAR seem clueless about the whole ordeal, this quote echoes one made by former NASCAR President and current Commissioner Steve Phelps during a Jun. 25 interview with Brian Sullivan of CNBC Sport.

“Listen, I’m not sure why [23XI] decided to bring a suit, and there’s another team called Front Row that also partnered with them on this suit. It is an antitrust case. We don’t believe it’s an antitrust case; we believe it’s a contractual issue.” — Steve Phelps on Jun. 25

Unlike O’Donnell, Phelps said he wasn’t sure why they were suing rather than being unsure of what they were suing for. Regardless, the similar phrasing seemingly downplays the gravity of the lawsuit.

Continuing his response to Estepp, O’Donnell called the situation “perplexing” but turned the focus away from the lawsuit, saying that NASCAR is “working hard every day to grow the sport” and that he is disappointed that the lawsuit is distracting conversations away from “growing the sport.”

“I think what’s probably most disappointing, even for me personally, is we’re spending time on this topic versus growing the sport, and I’m not sure our fans want to hear about lawsuits a lot of times,” O’Donnell said. “I know it’s out there, but, you know, we want to be talking about racing and future stars and where we’re gonna race next and horsepower, right?”

O’Donnell also echoed the importance of “growing the sport” when closing out his quick comments on the lawsuit, saying that they will defend the sport and that “hopefully, something can be resolved, but we’re concentrating on just growing the sport.”

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