CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — NASCAR Chairman Jim France is continuing testimony Wednesday as the final witness called by Michael Jordan’s side in the federal antitrust lawsuit lodged against the top motorsports series in the United States.
France returned to the stand on the eighth day of the trial to continue answering questions about his refusal to budge on key issues NASCAR teams asked for while negotiating their latest revenue-sharing model.
NASCAR implemented charters in 2016 as an answer to teams pleading for monetary assistance as they said they were bleeding money at an unsustainable rate. A charter is similar to a franchise in other sports, and in NASCAR it guarantees cars a spot in the 40-car field each week, as well as specified financial terms.
The extension offer presented in September 2024 did increase annual revenue promised to the teams but fell short of the team’ request for $720 million — a sum NASCAR Commissioner Steve Phelps testified would have put NASCAR out of business.
The offer given to teams on the Friday night of the opening weekend of the 2024 playoffs was 112-pages, had a midnight deadline to sign, and fell short of the four “pillars” the teams were demanding. Teams ended up receiving $431 million annually in increased revenue, but were not granted permanent charters, did not get a voice in governance or the terms they sought on new business streams.
23XI Racing, which is owned by basketball Hall of Famer Jordan, three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin, and Jordan’s financial adviser, Curtis Polk, and Front Row Motorsports, owned by Bob Jenkins, were the only two teams out of 15 organizations that refused to sign. They sued instead.
Evidence has been introduced that shows the top team owners in NASCAR all wrote personal letters pleading for France to make the renewable charters permanent. The plaintiffs also introduced several documents detailing communication between NASCAR executives that showed France was stubbornly opposed to permanent charters throughout the two-plus years of bitter negotiations.
Asked by plaintiffs’ attorney Jeffrey Kessler if he has changed his stance on making charters permanent, France testified Tuesday “No, I have not.”
Kessler later introduced a summary of notes from the first meeting of NASCAR executives on how they would approach negotiations with the teams. Steve O’Donnell, now the president of NASCAR, wrote in those notes, “Jim’s overarching comments — we are in a competition. We are going to win.”
France’s position never changed, even though he received pleas from Hall of Fame team owners Joe Gibbs, Rick Hendrick, Jack Roush and Roger Penske. All four are close personal friends, France said on the stand.
The Florida-based France family founded NASCAR in 1948 and the company has always been privately owned. Jim France is the second son of founder Bill France Sr.
Jim France, 81, was soft-spoken on the stand and needed many questions repeated. He said on numerous topics that he was either unable to recall, did not remember or was not sure. His inability to recall specifics even applied to testimony given last week by Gibbs’ daughter-in-law, who wrote an emotional letter to France during the negotiations explaining why her family was desperate for the charters to become permanent.
Evidence showed that as France read Heather Gibbs’ letter, O’Donnell texted France’s nephew, Ben Kennedy, that France was cursing as he read it aloud.
“I don’t believe I swore or got angry,” France testified.
Kessler then went through the letter by paragraphs asking France if anything written made him upset. France said ‘no’ to every citation, but neither he nor O’Donnell have been able to explain why O’Donnell characterized France’s reaction the way he did to Kennedy.
France also disputed some of Heather Gibbs’ testimony about the night of the “take-it-or-leave-it” charter offers. She said she left her father-in-law, then 84, sitting alone in a dark room, his blood sugar monitors going off, as he pleaded on the phone with France for concessions.
She testified that Joe Gibbs told her France was not open to conversation and told the team owner he’d be “at peace” with however many teams signed the agreements. Those who didn’t would lose their charters, which is why so many teams felt they had to sign.
France denied telling Joe Gibbs he’d be “at peace” with however the dust settled.
“I never said anything like that. I’m not saying I did, I’m not sure I didn’t, but I don’t recall,” France testified. “I don’t think I would have said anything like that to coach.”
He also didn’t remember the call from Joe Gibbs that night being of the pleading nature.
“He did not say that, that I can remember, no,” said France, who claimed the conversation was more about specific language regarding revenue.
France is the final witness for 23XI and Front Row. NASCAR will begin its defense following his testimony.
NASCAR attorney Christopher Yates told the court he is hopeful to wrap his defense by Friday.
The nine-person jury will have to decide if NASCAR violated antitrust laws, and if so, what the damages are to 23XI and Front Row. An economist has previously testified that NASCAR owes 23XI and Front Row $364.7 million in damages, and that NASCAR shorted 36 chartered teams $1.06 billion from 2021-24.
Should NASCAR lose the case, it will be up to U.S. District Judge Kenneth Bell to unravel the monopoly, and he can make any decisions he chooses. Among them are forcing the France family to sell NASCAR, the racetracks they own, and even dismantling or changing the charter system.
A win for 23XI and Front Row does not guarantee the teams will receive a combined six charters from NASCAR. They have both said they will go out of business if they are not chartered teams.
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