NASCAR Ford team Front Row Motorsports (FRM) and Toyota outfit 23XI have been locked in a heated fight against the sport’s sanctioning body over its charter system. FRM and 23XI have both been running as “open” teams – that is, teams without active charters – which they argue has hurt their revenue streams and put them in danger of losing their drivers and sponsors. Now, after a summer of “fact discovery,” some rather explicit messages from both sides of the aisle have surfaced, shedding new light on the sticky situation between the teams and NASCAR itself.
According to a recent report from Motorsport, both parties requested and were granted access to documents and communications pertaining to the ongoing case. Some of the unearthed communications revealed that 23XI co-owner Michael Jordan (yes, that Michael Jordan) expressed explicit displeasure with other teams’ decisions to sign the charter agreement.
Jordan seemed frustrated that Joe Gibbs Racing, a Toyota team, signed the charter agreement after an “11th hour” deal. Jordan called JGR executives “f***ers” before going on to say that fellow Cup Series teams would regret not siding with 23XI and FRM, calling said teams “p***ies” for standing by and watching.
On the opposite side of the aisle, communications between NASCAR President Steve Phelps and Steve O’Donnell, the sport’s commissioner, surfaced. Phelps admitted that the charter agreement presented “zero wins for the teams,” while O’Donnell explicitly said they wanted to reach an agreement reminiscent of past team structures, saying, “Close to a comfortable 1996, f*** the teams, dictatorship, motorsport, redneck, southern, tiny sport.”
FRM and 23XI could very well lose the case, and an unnamed buyer is in the market for their charters. Should FRM lose its charters, that could mean fewer NASCAR Ford entries on track, meaning The Blue Oval’s presence in the Cup Series would shrink even further.
Comments
‘NASCAR is, quite literally, saying “f*** the teams.”‘!!! I cannot disagree more with this writer. That is anything but the truth. NASCAR has put together a very sound and fair package for teams allowing them to know that they will be able to run in every race once they sign the documents. At the recent Darlington Cup race they were racing for $10,447,135!!! Think about that.
Is the $10,447,135 for the winner or was that the purse? If that’s the purse, that averages out to about $291,000 per team. Obviously, not evenly distributed. What does it cost a team to do a race? Building the cars, wages, travel, meals, spare parts, uniforms, entry fees…..etc.
I honestly do not know who is right, but I think we will all be a little worse once this is resolved. A pretty good chance that nobody wins this one in the end. But, my opinion.
Those are not my words. “Fuck the teams” is a direct quote from NASCAR execs.
Reading comprehension is apparently hard for Dave.
The teams and drivers are the back bone of the sport not NASCAR. NASCAR clearly has a monopoly on stock car racing in the United States. That’s the basis of this lawsuit plain and simple. When they took a take it or leave it approach in the last hours of charter contract negotiations they were not dealing in good faith. The France family is just like the Rockefeller’s and The Standard Oil Monopoly. Using strongarm tactics to stifle any competition. If they had got their hands on the other tracks that Speedway Motorsport owned, like they were considering. They could rule the sport with an iron fist and have limitless power. Jordan and 23X1 and Front Row have the guts to stand up to this and they were smart to do it. When all the teams should have joined them. Even NASCAR threatening to sell the 6 charters before the lawsuit is resolved if they can get the courts permission. Shows the lengths they are willing to go to in breaking the will of the teams, when they can’t get their way.