“My goal is simple — contend for the championship, fight for race wins and podium results, continue improving every weekend, and make the most of the opportunity to grow through the ARCA races as well. I’m grateful to Nick (Tucker) and Joe (Tovo) and everyone at Nitro Motorsports for believing in me and giving me the tools to keep moving forward.”

“Sam has been a key part of our program and someone we’ve believed in from the start,” added Nitro Motorsports co-owner Nick Tucker. “He’s mature, fast, and incredibly focused — exactly what you need to succeed.

“His pace last year showed he’s ready to fight at the front and giving him a couple of ARCA starts will only accelerate his growth and possibly provide a look into the future. We’re excited to have him back and fully expect him to be a championship contender in 2026.”

23XI Racing co-owners Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin were smiling like Cheshire cats after NASCAR settled their antitrust lawsuit on Day 9 of the trial. Jordan and Hamlin’s Cup Series team, alongside Front Row Motorsports, launched an antitrust lawsuit against the sanctioning body in October of last year after refusing to sign the latest charter agreement, accusing NASCAR of engaging in monopolistic practices.

Nearly 14 months of legal mud-slinging ensued, with both sides taking dents as the lawsuit rumbled on. 23XI and FRM were granted a preliminary injunction in December of last year, allowing them to maintain their chartered status for the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season.

However, that injunction was overturned in June this year on appeal, forcing both Cup Series outfits to run as “open” teams for the remainder of the season. That decision came at a considerable cost for 23XI and FRM, who were no longer guaranteed a spot in races, as well as incurring other financial losses, such as losing the shared revenue guaranteed with chartered status.

23XI and FRM stayed the course, and Hamlin issued a bullish message earlier this year about the scheduled trial, claiming “all will be exposed,” before partaking in a playoff run that saw the future NASCAR Hall of Famer come within a few laps of finally being crowned a Cup Series champion after two decades in the sport. The trial officially got underway on December 1 in a North Carolina courthouse, with 23XI co-owners Jordan and Hamlin well-received outside the court by fans, and ever-present throughout the proceedings.

Key testimonies from Hamlin and Heather Gibbs had an impact, as did Richard Childress’, which could still put NASCAR in a difficult spot. NASCAR found documents that revealed some of his non-NASCAR-related finances — finances that, he claims, were protected by a non-disclosure agreement.

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On Tuesday, Childress was hit with a line of questioning he hadn’t anticipated, leaving him clearly irritated. Attorneys pressed him about his efforts to court an investment firm to buy a portion of his 60% ownership in Richard Childress Racing, the team he founded in 1969. Childress believed those talks—with a group involving former NASCAR driver Bobby Hillin Jr., as well as the materials Hillin circulated to prospective investors—were private and would remain confidential.

To make matters worse, before Childress took to the stand, NASCAR Commissioner Steve Phelps had some unsavory opinions of the Cup Series team owner, as revealed in released text messages. What was revealed was “shockingly offensive” to key NASCAR sponsor Bass Pro Shops, which released a no-nonsense defense of Childress. NASCAR had barely started its trial defense when the lawsuit was settled on Day 9 on Thursday. The two parties reached an agreement, which pleased Judge Kenneth D. Bell, who had warned before the trial of the potential harm the case could cause.

Statements were released by all key players, from Jordan, Hamlin, 23XI co-owner Curtis Polk, FRM owner Bob Jenkins, and NASCAR CEO and Chairman Jim France. However, from emerging details, 23XI and FRM got the sweeter end of the bargain, which involved permanent “evergreen charters,” as well as receiving a reportedly substantial financial settlement involving money they had lost from racing as “open” teams. The settlement has been celebrated across the sport, with the likes of Roger Penske and Rick Hendrick releasing statements of optimism, looking forward to the future of NASCAR, with all eyes on the season-opening Daytona 500 next February. The Daily Express Sport U.S. looks at five key takeaways from the antitrust trial and settlement.

Permanent charters

In the post-court briefing, officials described the charters as effectively “evergreen,” meaning they’re expected to remain in place for the long term. That stability is likely to drive up charter values, since investors are far more willing to buy into an asset with a secure future than one that might become irrelevant within a few years.

Permanent charters also create a more reliable environment for sponsorship. NASCAR deals today are often short-term, making it difficult for brands to build continuity when teams fold or charters change hands. With greater financial stability and potentially higher revenue, teams will be better positioned to secure longer, stronger partnerships, which will help make team ownership more sustainable and financially worthwhile.

23XI and FRM got the better deal

23XI and FRM were the only two Cup Series teams to take the stand against NASCAR over its charter agreement. They put it all on the line, taking significant risk as other teams watched on, and the responses from rival outfits post-trial suggest that some felt similarly.

Unified messages were spoken outside on the court steps, but with Jordan, Hamlin, and Co. grinning like Cheshire cats, and getting NASCAR to the negotiating table, securing huge wins for their teams as well as the rest of the sport, is cause for celebration. They took on the sanctioning body and secured some historic wins, which could help transform NASCAR’s future.

NASCAR fans’ perception of leadership sinks further

There wasn’t much love lost between fans and leading NASCAR figures before the trial got underway. Fans had lingering frustrations over the Next Gen car and the current playoff system. Many fans believe that NASCAR’s leadership is out of touch with what race fans actually want. Texts, email exchanges, and the trial haven’t done NASCAR chiefs any favors in rebuilding bridges with the fans who have long felt ignored.

NASCAR leadership changes

With major sponsors such as Johnny Morris and Bass Pro Shops openly questioning NASCAR leadership, the spotlight on these issues is sure to intensify and could drive meaningful change. Morris took particular issue with Phelps’ “shockingly offensive” insults aimed at Childress and felt compelled to write a no-nonsense, brutally honest letter to NASCAR and The France Family.

Phelps appeared to bear the heaviest criticism, and he was largely absent from the post-court media session. Potential changes to NASCAR leadership are worth watching.

Unresolved Richard Childress issue

Permanent charters would secure RCR’s long-term future, Childress testified. After being left angered by NASCAR’s knowledge of a potential sale of a significant stake in RCR protected under an NDA, Childress is incentivized to stay put in a sport he has helped build for several decades with greater financial security.

As the trial wrapped up, plaintiff attorney Danielle Williams still had unresolved matters to address with District Judge Kenneth Bell. She pressed for clarity on how NASCAR obtained documents detailing portions of Richard Childress’s personal, non–NASCAR financial dealings—a non-disclosure agreement shielded records he insists. The “how” NASCAR obtained such documents could be one to watch.

Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP) has announced that a new ownership group has purchased the Bowmanville, Ontario circuit.

The new ownership group is led by Woodbridge Group co-chairman and former racing driver Peter Thomson, with Chris Pfaff of Pfaff Automotive Partners, and Alek Krstic as his partners. The existing management team and staff, led by CTMP President and General Manager Myles Brandt, will remain in place.

The Thomson-led group purchased the iconic circuit, historically known as Mosport, from Canadian Motorsports Ventures Ltd., which was established by businessman Carlo Fidani (father of 13 Autosport owner/driver Orey Fidani), legendary race driver Ron Fellows, and his wife Lynda. CMVL bought the circuit from Dr. Don Panoz in June 2011.

In a statement, the new ownership group stated that it will be “committed to preserving Mosport’s history, supporting its existing community of fans, teams, and event partners, and ensuring that all scheduled activities and operations continue uninterrupted.”

The new ownership group will share future plans for the circuit at the Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto from Feb. 13–22, including a road map for long-term development, investment strategies, and an enhanced role within the Canadian motorsport and entertainment spaces.

“Canadian Tire Motorsport Park is a place with deep heritage and a loyal community,” said ownership partner Pfaff. “Our team is proud to be its next steward. We’re committed to respecting everything that makes CTMP special today, while building the foundation for an elevated experience in the years ahead. We look forward to sharing more of our vision this February.”

I’m pleased to say we have positively settled this matter.

Representing 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports in its antitrust lawsuit against NASCAR, lead attorney Jeffrey Kessler made the announcement to Judge Kenneth D. Bell at 10:03 a.m. in the Potter Courtroom on the second floor of the Western District of North Carolina.

There was still more work to be done to formalize the end of the trial, however.

This statement was just verbalized and both parties’ representatives needed to go back to a separate room to type out a written settlement to codify the agreed upon principles. Judge Bell said he would remain on the bench ‘to encourage your progress.’

Day nine of the trial was scheduled to begin at 8:30 but the parties had arrived much earlier. When Judge Bell arrived to the Potter Courtroom, he dismissed the jury and told them he needed to ‘sacrifice an hour of your time to hopefully save several hours more’ of it.

At the time, there weren’t even monitors in the court room like there had been for every other day of the trial, a signal that neither party was prepared to continue witness examination.

Judge Bell returned from his chamber at 9:58 a.m.

“Do you have everyone you need to continue your examination?”

A lawyer said, ‘let me see if I can wrangle Mr. Kessler,’ to which Bell dryly said, ‘an indispensable man.’

At this point, 23XI co-owners Michael Jordan, Denny Hamlin and Curtis Polk emerged from their holding room, quite the sight because the latter would not be allowed in the room if examinations were truly going to continue.

Polk was a witness that had not testified yet and federal rules prevent his attending the proceedings until he testified. Thus, Judge Bell asked the defendants (NASCAR) if they ‘had objections’ to Polk being in the room.

“We do not, your honor,” said NASCAR attorney Lawrence Buterman, who had started the discovery process by ‘throwing documents’ Polk during a deposition and ended it with handshakes.

Buterman shook hands with Jordan while NASCAR CEO Jim France personal lawyer John E. Stephenson dapped with the NBA legend.

This is where Kessler appeared and told Judge Bell that he ‘needed a moment to see if we can close the loop’ and ‘get you some news.’  Kessler reappeared and told the Judge the news that the settlement was being drafted.

By 10:21 a.m., Buterman approached the bench because ‘I have a copy for your honor.’ Bell spent the next five minutes reading over the settlement terms and then called the jury back into the Potter Courtroom at 10:26 a.m.

“As so happens, an hour turns into two but we indeed saved you a great deal of time. This trial has been settled, meaning, it’s over.”

Bell went on to tell the jury that he recognizes that it could be ‘dissatisfying’ to spend all this time listening to testimony and consuming evidence without the chance to render a decision. However, Judge Bell said, the jury should be proud because they accomplished through their attentiveness what ‘His Honor’ could not accomplish during two days of court overseen settlement mediation.

He told the jury that he recognized they were attentive. ‘You knew the details of this case and I commend you for that.’

“Thank you for your hard work. Congratulations to both parties and I mean that. I wish we could have done this months ago. … I think this will be great for the entity of NASCAR, the NASCAR industry, the teams, the drivers, and as you have so often said yourselves, ultimately the fans.”

Both parties thanked the judge and court was dismissed. After 14 months, 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports v NASCAR ended with a settlement.  

The terms 

The agreement itself was not immediately publicized but the Associated Press had the provisional details that –

• Teams will now share international revenue for the first time
• The three-strike rule removed from the 2025 agreement is back as a five-strike rule
• Teams get a third of revenue from Intellectual Property
• Terms to be renegotiated with each media rights agreement
• 23XI and FRM has had their charters returned to them 

FOX Sports had additional provisional details that include

• Performance criteria, that if not met, result in the forced sale of a charter within a certain period of time
• NASCAR gets 10 percent of all charter sales, up from 2 percent

In other words, charters are now franchises that cannot be taken away from teams and are effectively equivalent to stick-and-ball teams. Unlike stick-and-ball teams, however, the teams do not have equity in NASCAR.

The France family will continue to operate NASCAR has it has done every year since its inception in 1948.

23XI and Front Row secured evergreen charters, which immediately increases enterprise value, at no cost to NASCAR while the Frances do not get put in a position to have to sell tracks or divest of its interests — a potential outcome had they lost. 

NASCAR has scheduled a call on Thursday with the non-party teams to discuss implementation and ratification of the new agreement, which will need to be signed by all parties.

The lawsuit alleged anti-competitive conduct by NASCAR using its monopsony status to financially damage the teams and competition in the marketplace. It was the end result of the final 2025 charter terms that fell short of what every team said they wanted most during negotiations.

These were called the ‘four pillars’ during the contentious back-and-forth.

By the end of negotiations, NASCAR ultimately signed 13 of the 15 charter holding teams for $431 million annually instead of the $720 they had sought. NASCAR did not budge on making the charter system permanent and instead gave teams seven years plus a seven-year option that did not guarantee revenue increases during the option years.

In the final 2025 terms, the three-strike rule that allowed teams to ‘call a strike’ against any decision it disagreed with was also not renewed from the inaugural 2016 agreement.

That rule would void the exclusivity agreements in the charter agreement if three strikes were called against the Sanctioning Body. Instead, NASCAR provided the teams a council that would meet and discuss changes but with no vote nor veto.

In the settlement terms, the three-strike rule is now a five-strike rule.

Immediate aftermath

With 30 minutes of court dismissing, all parties walked out of the Charles R. Jonas Federal Court House together. 

“I’m pleased to say the parties have positively settled this matter in a way that will benefit the industry going forward,” said Kessler on the court house steps. 

Buterman was the next to speak.

“One of the key issues here for NASCAR has always been the preservation of the charter system,” Buterman said. “And we are thrilled that through this system we get to preserve the charter system for the teams and stakeholders while at the same time providing NASCAR with the flexibility to run the sport in the best interest of all of the shareholders.”

And then Jordan. 

“I’ve said this from Day 1: Only way this sport is going to grow is we have to find some synergy between the two entities, and I think we’ve gotten to that point,” Jordan said. “Unfortunately, it took 16 months to get here, but I think, level heads got us to this point to where we can actually work together and grow this sport. I’m very proud about that. And I think (France) feels the same.”

France echoed that sentiment.

“We can get back to focusing on what we really love, and that’s racing,” France said. “We spent a lot of time not really focused on that as much as we need to be. So, I feel like we’ve made a very good decision here together and we have a big opportunity to continue growing the sport.”

Jordan was asked what eventually forced a settlement.

“Level heads,” said Jordan, getting a laugh from everyone on both sides on the steps. “In all honesty, when you get to the finish line sometimes, you have to think, not just about yourself but the sport as a whole.

“I think both parties got to that point and we realized we have an opportunity to do this, so we dove in and actually did it. Unfortunately, it took us this long, but we got there and that’s all that matters.

Jordan was asked if he felt like all of this was worth it in the end.

“Well, both parties feel like it was worth it,” he said.

At this point, Stephenson was shaking his head, an endorsement from the France side.

“We understand that we had to work together,” Jordan continued. Compromise in every negotiation is one of the toughest things to do. I think we both compromised on our agendas and we both came to the conclusion that this is better for the sport.”

That was the end of press conference.

Stephenson said ‘let’s go race’ and lead NASCAR attorney Chris Yates said ‘go to Bowman Gray’ and ‘go to Daytona.’ Kessler said ‘everyone show up to the tracks.’

As for Hamlin?

“I feel like everything within this settlement is going to grow this sport and it’s going to be better for everyone, there’s no doubt about.”

Loose ends

23XI, Front Row attorney Danielle Williams, even after the settlement was announced, still wanted to discuss in the court the source of the Bobby Hillin news and the documents. Judge Bell said they would work on that later.

We want your opinion!

– The Motorsport.com Team

By Mike Lednovich

The project was announced Tuesday by a development group headed by Indy 500 champion Bobby Rahal, in partnership with NF Sports Development, M2 Real Estate Advisors, and Atlanta Motorsports Park.

Proposed location of the complex west of I-95 near County Road 108

 

• 23XI and FRM sought US$365m in damages
• Both teams will have their charters returned from next season
• Nascar will issue updated charter agreement to all teams soon

Nascar has reached a settlement with 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports (FRM), bringing its long-running legal battle with two of its teams to a close.

While the details of the settlement have not been confirmed, a key outcome from this compromise will be the creation of permanent charters. It is known from the trial that 23XI and FRM sought US$365 million in damages from Nascar if they won the case, but financial details were not disclosed. 23XI and FRM will also have their charters returned to them for the 2026 season.

In other words, Nascar is now has a much more similar structure to the stick-and-ball leagues in North America, although its teams do not have equity in the series itself.

‘Nascar, 23XI Racing, and Front Row Motorsports are pleased to announce a mutually agreed-upon resolution that delivers long-term stability and creates the conditions for meaningful growth for all teams in a more competitive environment,’ a joint statement released by all parties read.

‘This resolution reflects our shared commitment to maintaining a fair and equitable framework for long-term participation in America’s premier motorsport, one that supports teams, partners, and stakeholders while ensuring fans enjoy uninterrupted access to the best racing in the world.

‘The agreement allows all parties to move forward with a unified focus on advancing stock car racing and delivering exceptional competition for our fans.

‘With this matter now resolved, all parties look forward to working together, alongside all chartered race teams, to deliver world-class events, dynamic sponsorship and partner activation opportunities, and continued growth for generations to come.

‘As a condition of the settlement agreement, Nascar will issue an amendment to existing charter holders detailing the updated terms for signature, which will include a form of “evergreen” charters, subject to mutual agreement. The financial terms of the settlement are confidential and will not be released.

‘What all parties have always agreed on is a deep love for the sport and a desire to see it fulfill its full potential. This is a landmark moment, one that ensures Nascar’s foundation is stronger, its future is brighter, and its possibilities are greater. We extend our sincere thanks to Judge Kenneth Bell and mediator Jeffrey Mishkin for their professionalism, and guidance throughout this process and to their jury for their time.’

23XI and FRM filed a lawsuit last year after being offered a take-it-or-leave-it contract by Nascar for the current cycle of charter agreements. At the time, 13 of the 15 teams decided to sign the agreement, but 23XI and FRM held firm in their belief that the series’ approach represented monopolistic practices.

23XI and FRM raced for most of the 2025 season unchartered in pursuit of their goal, which now looks to have paid off handsomely.

While the agreement was not immediately publicised, the Associated Press has since reported that teams will now share international revenue for the first time. Teams will also get a third of revenue generated from Nascar’s intellectual property (IP) and terms will be renegotiated in line with each new media rights cycle.

The three-strike rule also returns to the agreement having been removed in 2025 – a system that allowed teams to dispute certain Nascar decisions – but this will now be a five-strike rule. This rule voided the exclusivity agreements in the charter agreement if three strikes (now five) were called against the sanctioning body.