The two race teams suing NASCAR over antitrust allegations filed for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction Monday to be recognized as chartered organizations for the remainder of 2025.

23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports are locked in a lengthy legal battle over the charter system, which is the equivalent of the franchise model in other sports. 23XI, owned by retired NBA great Michael Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin, and Front Row, owned by entrepreneur Bob Jenkins, last September rejected NASCAR’s final proposal on extensions and instead filed an antitrust suit.

The case is winding its way through the court system but now with urgency: the teams were set to lose their charters Wednesday and in the latest filing, they allege NASCAR has indicated it will immediately begin the process of selling the six tags that guarantee entry into every race as well as monetary rewards and other benefits.

After the filing NASCAR was ordered to respond by 5 p.m. Wednesday — which means there would be no ruling on if the charters will be revoked likely until Thursday, at the earliest.

“Today we filed a motion in the district court for a renewed preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order to protect the teams’ ability to race chartered for the remainder of the 2025 Cup Series season and prevent irreparable business harm to 23XI and Front Row Motorsports until we can present our case at trial in December,” said Jeffery Kessler, attorney for the teams.

“New information surfaced through the discovery process that overwhelmingly supports our position that a preliminary injunction is legally warranted and necessary. The teams’ love of stock car racing and belief in a better future for the sport for all parties – teams, drivers, employees, sponsors, and fans – continues to motivate their efforts to pursue this antitrust case.”

There were large portions of the filing redacted because the arguments are based on information learned through discovery, making it confidential, for now. But, the urgency is likely tied to NASCAR indicating it plans to immediately begin selling the charters if they are revoked.

Should the teams have their six combined charters revoked, the drivers would have to qualify on speed to make each week’s race and would receive a smaller percentage of the purse. They may also have to refund money paid out through the first 20 races of the year.

NASCAR accused 23XI and Front Row of filing “a third motion for another unnecessary and inappropriate preliminary injunction” and noted it has made multiple requests to the teams “to present a proposal to resolve this litigation.”

“We have yet to receive a proposal from 23XI or Front Row, as they have instead preferred to continue their damaging and distracting lawsuit,” NASCAR said in a statement. “We will defend NASCAR’s integrity from this baseless lawsuit forced upon the sport that threatens to divide the stakeholders committed to serving race fans everywhere.

“We remain focused on collaborating with the 13 race teams that signed the 2025 charter agreements and share our mutual goal of delivering the best racing in the world each week, including this weekend in Dover.”

Also on Monday, Rick Ware Racing and Legacy Motor Club had a short virtual hearing in a North Carolina court over their fight for a charter.

Legacy, owned by seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson, contends it had an agreement with RWR to lease one of its two charters in 2026. RWR contends the agreement was for 2027 and it already has a contract with RFK Racing to lease that team a charter next season.

Legacy on Monday asked for and was granted the right to depose RWR over the recent revelation that T.J. Puchyr, one of the founders of Spire Motorsports, plans to purchase the race team. Legacy contends if Ware is selling the team, then one of the charters should be transferred to its organization.

Legacy also argued that Ware did not disclose he was entering into a sales agreement with a third party — Puchyr, who is now a consultant and brokered the initial lease deal between RWR and Legacy — in an April hearing. The judge in that case warned that RWR could be in contempt of court if it misrepresented its intentions in the first hearing.

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

The NASCAR In-Season Tournament bracket has been updated following an exhilarating weekend at Sonoma Raceway in California. Sparks flew at the end of the Toyota/Save Mart 350, as Ty Dillon bumped Alex Bowman out of the way on the final lap to advance to the Round of 4.

Now, he’ll be matched up against John Hunter Nemechek. On the other side of the bracket, Tyler Reddick will face Ty Gibbs in what should be a doozy of a showdown. Dover International Speedway will be the cathedral for the Round of 4.

Dillon has been the star of the In-Season Tournament, the very last seed making a miraculous run to the Round of 4. His victory over Bowman didn’t come without controversy, as the duo shared words on pit road following the last-lap incident. Dillon’s team in Kaulig Racing shared a video of the conversation, with Dillon and Bowman sharing an awkward handshake at the end.

Prior to moving past Bowman, the No. 32 seed in Dillon defeated No. 1-seed Denny Hamlin and No. 17-seed Brad Keselowski. Bowman previously the No. 8 seed. Winning the tournament and a cool million would be a huge boost for Dillon, who has yet to win a race in his Cup Series career.

In the process, the run Dillon has been on is getting a lot of attention. Along with defeating the top drivers in NASCAR, the 33-year-old has trolled Hamlin and Keselowski after winning. This led to NASCAR legend and FOX Sports analyst Kevin Harvick calling Dillon out for his actions.

“The bracket, there’s a little bit of luck involved in, no matter what racetracks we go to, but starting at Atlanta just turned it all upside down,” Harvick said on Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour. “I mean, Ty Dillon is still in it.”

Harvick also shared his reaction to Dillon trolling Keselowski: “I just don’t know how you talk that much trash when you run that bad, though,” he stated. “I would just be more humble about it. I mean, if you were up there running first or second, third, fifth, something, and you’re knocking people out of the bracket, but you’re knocking the guys out that are crashing. Let’s not be cocky about it.”

All told, Dillon has earned one top-10 finish, which was eighth place at Atlanta. Maybe Harvick has a point. The Welcome, North Carolina native returned to full-time Cup Series racing this year after being part-time in 2024. In 249 Cup Series races, Dillon has finished in the top 10 seven times.

The rest of the competitors in the NASCAR In-Season Tournament Round of 4 are a little more polished. Tyler Reddick has to be the favorite at this point among the four. He’s the reigning regular season champion in the sport, and while he hasn’t found that same level of success in 2025, he’s still a major threat to win each weekend.

Time will tell who gets the better of one another in Dover, and which drivers advance to the finale. After a trip to Delaware, it’ll all come to a head in the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. We’ll see if it’s Ty Dillon, John Hunter Nemechek, Tyler Reddick or Ty Gibbs standing tall at the end of it all.

— On3’s Brian Jones contributed to this article.

NASCAR has been engaged in a legal battle with 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports since the two teams rejected the sanctioning body’s final Charter Agreement proposal last September. 23XI and FRM instead decided to file an antitrust lawsuit, accusing NASCAR and its CEO Jim France of “unlawful monopolization of premier stock car racing in order to enrich themselves at the expense of the premier stock car racing teams.”

But nearly a year later, NASCAR commissioner Steve Phelps still isn’t sure why the teams are suing them. Phelps said he doesn’t know what the teams’ demands are, adding that NASCAR would be open to a settlement.

“I don’t know what’s gonna happen,” Phelps told John Ourand of Puck. “The lawsuit is supposed to be an antitrust lawsuit. I don’t believe it’s an antitrust lawsuit. I think it’s just a contractual dispute. We had 13 of the 15 charter holders representing 32 teams sign. On balance, if there are winners and losers to the charter extension, I think the teams won. The number one thing the teams wanted was more money, which is exactly what we gave to them.

“We’re either gonna settle or we’re gonna go to court. Do I think we’d be willing to entertain a settlement? Yeah. To date, they have not come with anything. I don’t even know what their demands are. I don’t even know what they’re suing for.”

NASCAR vs. 23XI, Front Row lawsuit takes another turn

The final Charter Agreement proposal came Sept. 6, 2024. 23XI and FRM were the two holdouts among the 15 Cup Series teams. The final offer included a nearly 50 percent increase that teams earned from NASCAR’s record $1.1 billion per year television deal that went into effect in 2025 and also runs through 2031.

Monday, 23XI and FRM filed another restraining order against NASCAR and a new preliminary injunction in order to save their charter status for the remainder of the 2025 season. The teams filed the restraining order and new preliminary injunction after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit denied the teams’ request to rehear their case after a three-judge panel overturned the preliminary injunction which granted charter status to the teams throughout the duration of their lawsuit against NASCAR.

The Court of Appeals initially vacated the preliminary injunction June 5. 23XI and FRM are currently set to lose their chartered status on Wednesday. The teams wanted NASCAR to file a response by Tuesday afternoon. The judge has given NASCAR until 5 p.m. ET Wednesday to respond. Judge Ken Bell of North Carolina’s Western District urged both sides to settle before the case goes to trial Dec. 1.

“It’s hard to picture a winner if this goes to the flag — in this case,” Bell said June 18. “It scares me to death to think about what all this is costing.”

Kyle Busch remains outside a playoff spot with six races left in the regular season, but he closed the gap after last weekend’s race at Sonoma Raceway.

Busch’s 10th-place finish helped him gain nine points on the cutline. He goes into Sunday’s race at Dover Motor Speedway 37 points behind Bubba Wallace for the final playoff spot.

Ryan Preece remains the first driver outside a playoff spot. He is three points behind Wallace after losing one point to Wallace at Sonoma.

Twelve different drivers have won a race this season, leaving four playoff positions via points at this time.

Tyler Reddick is 149 points above the cutline. Chris Buescher is 34 points above the cutline, and Alex Bowman is 32 points above the cutline, held by Wallace.

Here is a look at the playoff standings heading to Dover (those in yellow have won this season):

DOVER, Del. — Rajah Caruth will return to the NASCAR Xfinity Series in a Jordan Anderson Racing car July 19 at Dover Motor Speedway.

Caruth will wheel the No. 32 Events DC Chevrolet Camaro at Dover. It will be his first Xfinity Series start since finishing 14th with Hendrick Motorsports in the 2023 season finale at Phoenix Raceway.

“This weekend marks a special moment for our team as rising star Rajah Caruth joins us in the No. 32 Chevrolet at Dover with the support of Events DC. Rajah’s proven talent and hometown pride make this a powerful opportunity to showcase what we can achieve together on one of NASCAR’s toughest tracks – the Monster Mile,” Jordan Anderson Racing stated on social media.

Since his most recent Xfinity start, Caruth has been racing full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for Spire Motorsports with full backing from HendrickCars.com. Three races into his first season with Spire, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March 2024, Caruth earned his first career win and locked himself into the playoffs. Then, in May 2025, Caruth earned his second playoff berth with a fierce win at Nashville Superspeedway.

Caruth has 18 other Xfinity starts under his belt, all with Alpha Prime Racing. He raced for them seven times in 2022 and 11 times in 2023 and earned his career-best finish – 12th – two years in a row in the fall Martinsville race. In all, he has seven top-20 finishes with Alpha Prime, mostly at driver-focused tracks like Martinsville, Phoenix, Darlington, Bristol and the Charlotte Roval.

Meanwhile, Jake Finch will step into his old Xfinity ride – the No. 17 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports – for his series debut.

MORE: Jake Finch to make NASCAR Xfinity debut with Hendrick Motorsports

Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.

A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.

Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick’s final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen’s stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers’ stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.

Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com