Denny Hamlin (11) leads the field into Turn 1 to start the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Pocono Raceway, Sunday, June 22, 2025, in Long Pond, Pa. (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Attorneys for 12 of NASCAR’s 15 race teams told a federal judge that disclosing their financial records to the stock car series would be “catastrophic” to competitive balance. NASCAR wants the details as part of its court fight with two other teams, 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports, which contend NASCAR is a monopoly and needs to change its charter system. The other teams don’t want their financial records to become part of the legal battle, saying they are private.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Attorneys for 12 of NASCAR’s 15 race teams argued in federal court Tuesday that disclosing their financial records to the stock car series would be “catastrophic” to competitive balance and warned that making such details public would put them all in danger.

The hearing was over a discovery dispute between NASCAR and the teams that are not parties in the ongoing antitrust suit filed by 23XI Racing, which is owned by retired NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin, and Front Row Motorsports, owned by entrepreneur Bob Jenkins.

23XI and Front Row are the only two organizations out of the 15 that refused last September to sign take-it-or-leave offers on a new charter agreement. Charters are NASCAR’s version of a franchise model, with each charter guaranteeing entry to the lucrative Cup Series races and a stable revenue stream. Of the 13 teams that signed, only Kaulig Racing has submitted the financial documents NASCAR subpoenaed as part of discovery.

The other 12 organizations are fighting against releasing the information to NASCAR and even argued that NASCAR asking for them violates the charter agreement, which claims all disputes must go to arbitration.

U.S. District Judge Kenneth Bell of the Western District of North Carolina promised a quick ruling but, just like last week, seemed exasperated at the lengths being taken in this brawl that for now is heading toward a December trial.

“I am amazed at the effort going into burning this house down over everybody’s heads,” Bell said at the end of the nearly two-hour hearing. “But I’m the fire marshal and I will be here in December if need be.”

Attorneys for the teams say their financial records are private and there is no guarantee the information won’t be leaked; in a hearing last week, information learned in discovery was disclosed in open court.

“It would be absolutely devastating to these race teams if their competitors were able to find out sponsorships on the cars, driver salaries and all revenue streams,” attorney Adam Ross said. “It cannot make its way into the public realm.”

Ross said NASCAR has asked for 11 years of records and communications — including what Hendrick Motorsports spent on both its Garage 56 project building a car to race at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the cost of Kyle Larson running both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 the last two seasons.

“NASCAR has gone a step too far,” Ross said.

NASCAR argued it needs the financials to understand profit margins and whether teams are actually unable to make ends meet under the charter agreement. NASCAR vowed to redact details to conceal team identities, a suggestion that was met with skepticism from team attorneys who contended it would be easy to connect the dots and, for example, figure out which contracts belong to, say, Team Penske.

Attorneys also argued that money is not often distributed equally across the board with each team. For example, Team Penske might use an engineer for a NASCAR team, an IndyCar team and a sports car team.

Bell asked NASCAR why it would not be satisfied with just “topline” numbers.

“Why is not enough to know it costs X to run a car?” Bell asked.

Attorneys for the 12 teams also noted that their clients are extremely uncomfortable to be dragged into the suit.

“This is the opposite of what they want — all the teams are torn to pieces that NASCAR wants them to disclose this information and they don’t want to upset NASCAR,” Ross said.

Teams have long argued that NASCAR is not financially viable and they needed multiple concessions, including a greater revenue stream and a more permanent length on the charter agreements. Those presently have expiration dates and can be revoked by NASCAR. Two years of negotiations ended last fall with 13 teams signing on but 23IX and FRM instead heading to court.

The hearing came one day after Bell declined to dismiss the teams’ request to toss out NASCAR’s countersuit, which accuses Jordan business manager Curtis Polk of using “cartel”-type tactics in the most recent round of charter negotiations.

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Veteran Driver Talent Integration

A key highlight of this alliance is the inclusion of Derek Thorn, one of the most respected and accomplished drivers in Super Late Model racing. Known for his dominance in recent years at the Snowball Derby and a 2022 winner along with multiple championships, Thorn’s move to Port City chassis with Highlands Motorsports marks a significant milestone in his career, adding valuable experience to Highlands Motorsports, Port City Racecars, and Rette Jones Racing.

“I’m excited to start this new chapter,” Thorn said. “The partnership between Highlands Motorsports, Port City, and Rette Jones Racing is outstanding. We’re eager to finish the ASA season strong and set our sights on the Snowball Derby in December.”

Thorn will join a talented Port City Racecars driver roster that already includes up-and-coming Kyle Steckly, veteran Kole Raz, and NASCAR Cup star Noah Gragson.

Adding to the excitement, Noah Gragson, a NASCAR Cup star, and co-owner of Port City Racecars, shared his enthusiasm:

“This is badass! I can’t wait to get to Pensacola this year and have Thorn “the Goat of Pensacola in our camp.” said Gragson.

Looking Ahead

VP of Business Development Greg Zipadelli stated, “We are all very excited and optimistic about the future, with the alliance poised to deliver improved performance, innovative engineering, and opportunities for driver development”. Fans can expect to see Highlands Motorsports competing with new equipment and a revitalized focus as they target strong finishes in upcoming races.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Twelve of NASCAR’s teams will only have to disclose their financial records in a limited scope to the league, a federal judge ruled Wednesday, the latest development in an ongoing lawsuit between NASCAR and two other teams.

The 12 teams appeared in federal court on Tuesday to argue against being required to fully disclose their financial records to NASCAR. They expressed reservations about whether the sensitive nature of their financials would remain private. If it were leaked, they argued, it could potentially disrupt the competition within the sport to “catastrophic” levels.

The hearing was part of the joint antitrust lawsuit filed by 23XI Racing, which is co-owned by NBA legend Michael Jordan and Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin, and Front Row Motorsports against NASCAR and its CEO and chairman, Jim France, alleging monopolistic practices. The lawsuit, filed last October, came after 23XI and Front Row decided not to sign an extension to the charter agreement that guarantees teams certain revenues and a starting spot in all 36 Cup points races.

In the lawsuit, the teams argued that the sport’s current economic model makes it difficult for even the most successful teams to break even. NASCAR was seeking 11 years of records with the intent of learning what revenue teams generate, how much they spend to compete at the highest level of stock car racing, and what their profit margins are. If U.S. District Court judge Kenneth D. Bell had ruled in NASCAR’s favor, they would’ve had access to every financial detail related to operating a NASCAR team across all divisions, including salaries for drivers and other team personnel, how much a team spends on research and development, and what each specifically earns from corporate sponsorship and from manufacturers.

Adam Ross, an attorney who argued on behalf of the 12 teams, referred to NASCAR’s request as a “fishing expedition.”

“It would be absolutely devastating to these race teams if their competitors were able to find out sponsorships on the cars, driver salaries and all revenue streams,” Ross said. “It cannot make its way into the public realm.”

NASCAR countered that it would use an outside accounting firm to review the information in addition to listing teams anonymously and redacting sponsor names.

Judge Bell agreed with the teams, and while the 12 teams will have to disclose some of their records, it will be done in a more restrictive manner — only “annual top-line financial data (total revenue, total costs, and net profits/losses) on an anonymized, average per-car basis for each year dating back to 2014.” One team, Kaulig Racing, has already submitted its financials to NASCAR.

Of the 15 teams that hold charters — valued in the mid-eight figures — only 23XI and Front Row chose not to sign the charter agreement that resulted from drawn-out and contentious negotiations spanning two years.

At the end of the nearly two-hour-long hearing on Tuesday, Bell, just as he did the week prior, expressed disbelief that the two sides are on course for what could be a potentially seismic showdown in federal court that carries serious ramifications. The trial is scheduled to begin Dec. 1.

“I am amazed at the effort going into burning this house down over everybody’s heads,” Bell said. “But, I’m the fire marshal, and I will be here in December if need be.”

Last week, Bell urged both sides to find middle ground and settle. Hamlin said Saturday that no progress had been made toward a settlement.

“We did not want to entertain any of that until we went through full discovery,” Hamlin said at Pocono Raceway, site of last week’s NASCAR race.

Mediation is scheduled to begin in August.

(Top photo of 23XI Racing’s No. 23 car: Jeff Robinson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

HAMPTON, GA. — Here is the TV schedule for this weekend as NASCAR heads to EchoPark Speedway at Atlanta and Lime Rock Park.

NASCAR TV Schedule This Weekend for EchoPark Atlanta and Lime Rock Park: June 27, 2025

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series practice at Lime Rock Park

• 1:05 p.m. (All times Eastern)
• FS2

ARCA Menards Series practice at Lime Rock Park

NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying at EchoPark Speedway Atlanta

ARCA Menards Series qualifying at Lime Rock Park

NASCAR Cup Series qualifying at EchoPark Speedway Atlanta

Focused Health 250 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at EchoPark Speedway Atlanta

TV Schedule for Saturday, June 28

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series qualifying at Lime Rock Park

• 9:30 a.m. (All times Eastern)
• FS1

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ LiUNA! 150 at Lime Rock Park

ARCA Menards Series’ Lime Rock Park 100

Quaker State 400 NASCAR Cup Series race at EchoPark Speedway Atlanta

MORE: NASCAR at EchoPark Speedway Atlanta 2025: Odds and more info

More from the racing experts

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

What’s Happening?

Larry McLure, a long-time fixture of the NASCAR Garage as co-owner of Morgan-McClure Motorsports, has passed away.

• McClure made his name in NASCAR as a co-owner of the Morgan-McClure Motorsports No. 4 car with Tim Morgan. This car, often recognized for the yellow Kodak paint scheme that it carried from 1986 to 2003, competed in the NASCAR Cup Series from 1983 to 2009.
• During the early to mid-1990s, the team was one of, if not the most dominant, cars at Daytona, winning the 1991, 1994, and 1995 Daytona 500 and two summer races with Ernie Irvan and Sterling Marlin. This skill also transferred to Talladega, as between these two drivers, the No. 4 team won nine of 24 superspeedway races from 1991 to 1996.
• During the team’s lifetime, the No. 4 won 14 NASCAR Cup Series races while fielding a long list of recognizable drivers. Aside from Irvan and Marlin, Morgan-McClure Motorsports entered cars for the likes of Mark Martin, Bobby Hamilton, Mike Skinner, and Ward Burton.
• Morgan-McClure Motorsports entered their final NASCAR Cup Series race in the fall of 2009 at Bristol, the same track where they won their first race in 1990 with Irvan. That evening, Scott Wimmer piloted No. 4 to 29th place, finishing four laps down. The team attempted to qualify for the 2010 Bristol night race but failed to do so with Kevin Lepage behind the wheel.
• McLure joins a tragically growing list of NASCAR team owners to pass away in 2025. This list includes former Cup Series team owner Travis Carter and current Truck Series team owners Charlie Henderson and Shigeaki Hattori.

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