The ongoing antitrust lawsuit between Ford team Front Row Motorsports (FRM), Toyota’s 23XI Racing, and NASCAR is far from over. The court ruled in favor of FRM and 23XI earlier this week, allowing them to compete as chartered entries in the 2025 Cup Series season, but to absolutely no surprise, NASCAR is fighting back and has appealed that ruling.
According to a report from Racer, not only will NASCAR file an appeal of the preliminary injunction brought by FRM and 23XI, it has also filed additional motions. This includes asking for an emergency motion of partial stay of injunction, along with asking for the teams to post an injunction bond.
NASCAR representatives stated that they are “likely to succeed on appeal,” and allege that the sport is in danger of “suffering irreparable harm without a stay of the Court’s decision.” They also argue that FRM and 23XI “would not face substantial harm because the continued enforcement of a partial stay would address each of Plaintiffs’ irreparable harm allegations.”
NASCAR’s claim of irreparable harm stems from the pending approval of the sale of the charters left behind by Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), a Ford-allied team that ceased operations at the end of the 2024 season. NASCAR must approve charter sales between teams and SHR and argue that the preliminary injunction will have lasting effects beyond the 2025 racing season.
If it stays on its current trajectory, the charter sales “will effectively force NASCAR into a seven- to 14-year contractual relationship” with 23XI and FRM. Additionally, the sanctioning body fears that allowing FRM and 23XI to race in 2025 as chartered entities will force NASCAR to disclose confidential information.
FRM and 23XI, on the other hand, argue that their sponsors – like Love’s Travel Stops, which invests quite a bit in FRM – will pull funding if they are not racing as chartered entities and guaranteed a spot on the grid.
Comment
NASCAR is such a monopoly I hope they lose their appeal.