Charlotte, North Carolina, December 8, 2025

            Court filings submitted by THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA and reviewed by THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT put forth the first complete public explanation for why Michael Jordan’s team, 23XI Racing, together with Front Row Motorsports, have initiated an antitrust action against NASCAR. The plaintiffs’ filings depict a dispute that concerns the economic structure of premier stock car racing, the scope of contractual non-competition provisions, and the requirement contained in the proposed 2025 charter arrangement that teams release certain legal claims as a condition of entering the season.

The complaint filed by 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports states that NASCAR has long occupied a position of singular control over top-tier stock car racing in the United States, and that participation in the Cup Series, the principal national series, depends entirely upon sanctioning by NASCAR. The filing explains that the charter system created in 2016 provided chartered teams with guaranteed entry into Cup Series events, but the plaintiffs contend that the system remained economically restrictive, continued to face heavy operational costs, and that the charters contained provisions forbidding participation in other professional stock car series. The plaintiffs further assert that NASCAR reinforced this exclusivity through the acquisition of tracks and other series, thereby maintaining the Cup Series as the only true avenue for premier competition.

The plaintiffs’ filings describe the introduction of the Next Gen car and put forth the contention that teams are required to purchase parts from single approved suppliers, with costs that teams characterize as burdensome. The filings explain that NASCAR determines the design, distribution, and permitted use of these parts and that these cars may not be operated in any other professional series not sanctioned by NASCAR.

According to the complaint, discussions regarding a new charter arrangement for the twenty 25 season took place between twenty 22 and twenty 24. The plaintiffs state that they and other teams sought a permanent charter structure and more sustainable financial terms. The filing asserts that while teams attempted to negotiate collectively, NASCAR ended the joint negotiation process and instructed each team to negotiate individually. The plaintiffs further allege that on September 6^th, twenty 24, at approximately 5:00 in the afternoon, NASCAR transmitted a final version of the 2025 Charter Agreement, extending more than one hundred pages, and required teams to sign it within a very short period of time. The complaint states that NASCAR, later, extended the deadline into the night and the leadership at NASCAR warned that the charter system could be eliminated altogether if a sufficient number of teams did not accept the agreement.

Jordan’s Team also assert that the proposed 2025 Charter Agreement expands the non-competition obligation beyond the stock car series and prohibits participation in any professional auto or truck racing series not sanctioned by NASCAR. They further contend that the new agreement contains a release clause that requires teams to relinquish legal claims concerning charter criteria and that NASCAR has communicated an intent to use this clause to argue that future antitrust challenges would be barred. They then state that the release requirement compelled them to decline the agreement in order to preserve their right to bring an action under the antitrust laws.

The Motion for Preliminary Injunction filed by the plaintiffs asks the Court for relief permitting them to race under the 2025 charter terms while preventing the release clause from being enforced against their antitrust claims. Jordan’s team explain that unless the Court grants the requested relief, they will face the loss of charter benefits and the exclusion from Cup Series events, consequences that they characterize as severe and immediate. The Fourth Circuit’s subsequent opinion recounts these allegations and confirms that the plaintiffs seek to prevent the release clause from foreclosing their antitrust claims while also seeking permanent injunctive and monetary relief.

Throughout these filings, Michael Jordan’s team maintains that NASCAR has used its position to impose what they describe as anticompetitive conditions and that judicial intervention is required, to free the market for competition, and to ensure that teams may earn reasonable and sustainable returns. The Fourth Circuit opinion emphasizes that the Court has not accepted these allegations as proven but records them as the basis for the pl23XI Racings’ requested relief.

All information presented herein is drawn from first-hand court documents filed by the parties and from the official summary issued by THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT, and no secondary accounts or interpretations have been included.

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Sources

Primary First-Hand Sources

• THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA, antitrust complaint filed in 23XI Racing LLC and Front Row Motorsports, Inc. v. NASCAR et al., case number 3:24-cv-886.
• THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA, Motion for Preliminary Injunction filed by 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports.
• THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT, opinion summarizing the allegations and procedural posture in appeal number 24-2245.