Judge Delivers Scathing Reality Check as NASCAR’s Charter War With Michael Jordan’s 23XI Turns Volatile

Tensions exploded in a Charlotte, North Carolina, courtroom on Tuesday, June 24, as NASCAR’s bitter charter battle with Michael Jordan’s 23XI Racing reached a boiling point. Twelve NASCAR Cup Series teams fought desperately to shield financial records from the sanctioning body, calling disclosure “catastrophic” for competitive survival.

The hearing exposed raw nerves in NASCAR’s franchise model war. U.S. District Judge Kenneth Bell’s closing remarks cut through the legal sparring.

Judge Kenneth Bell Blasts Legal ‘Arsonists’ in Fiery Courtroom 23XI vs. NASCAR Battle

After nearly two hours of arguments over financial secrecy, Bell’s frustration erupted. “I am amazed at the effort going into burning this house down over everybody’s heads,” Judge Bell declared. “But I’m the fire marshal and I will be here in December if need be.”

The “house” refers to NASCAR itself. Teams fear revealing driver salaries, sponsorship deals, and manufacturer payments would cripple their operations. Attorney Adam Ross argued NASCAR’s demand for 11 years of records crossed a red line.

“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 has gone a step too far.”

NASCAR claims it needs the data to counter 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports’ antitrust lawsuit alleging economic unfairness. Yet Bell questioned the scope, asking NASCAR’s attorney, “Why is not enough to know it costs X to run a car?”

Anonymized Compromise Fails to Douse Flames of Distrust Within NASCAR Teams

In a partial victory for NASCAR teams, Bell ordered limited disclosure through a neutral accountant. Organizations must provide anonymized per-car averages for revenue, costs, and profits since 2014, far narrower than NASCAR’s original subpoena. The data will hide team identities, accessible only to attorneys and experts.

But trust remains filled with tension. Ross emphasized teams feel “torn to pieces” by NASCAR’s request, noting they compete directly for sponsors. He warned redactions wouldn’t prevent identification, and said, “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.”

The hearing followed Bell’s refusal to dismiss NASCAR’s explosive counterclaim, labeling the teams (23XI and FRM) as an “illegal cartel” aiming at Jordan’s business manager, Curtis Polk, during charter negotiations.

NASCAR cited Polk’s alleged boycott threats and cited a quote from Benjamin Franklin to teams: “We must all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately.”

“NASCAR knows it has no defense to the monopolization case so they have come up with this claim about joint negotiations, which they agreed to, never objected to, and now suddenly it’s an antitrust violation,” Jeffrey Kessler, an attorney representing the teams, said.

With a December trial date looming, teams face agonizing calculations. Protecting secrets risks judicial wrath. Disclosure could arm competitors, including NASCAR itself, which now owns teams.