The preliminary hearing of the NASCAR Cup Series injunction lawsuit has taken place and the first details surrounding the same have started to emerge as both 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports (FRM) go against the governing body themselves.
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As both parties argued in front of a judge, Jeffrey Kressler, Michael Jordan’s lawyer and representative of the lawsuit from the teams’ point of view argued at one point that organizations such as 23XI and FRM are committed to competing in stock car racing. Kressler claimed the teams are unable to join any other motorsports genres because of their investment and commitment to NASCAR.
“You can’t go tell a football player to be a baseball player, and you can’t tell a stock car team to go be a Formula 1 team,” argued Kressler with aims of showing commitment to American stock car racing. However, the same seemed to backfire with the sport’s fanbase as several reactions poured in on social media.
Some questioned Jeffrey Kressler’s abilities as a lawyer while others drew parallels to NASCAR Cup team owners such as Gene Haas and Justin Marks. “Justin Marks running NASCAR, Dirt and MotoGP has entered the chat,” said one fan. “Gene Haas literally has an F1 team and a NASCAR team though?” wrote another.
Gene Haas literally has an F1 team and a NASCAR team though?
— 🏎️ (@USHighway14) November 4, 2024
Some fans even questioned the Winston & Strawn LLP co-executive chairman’s judgment in fighting law and wrote, “I thought Kessler was supposed to be smart. Must have got bad info eh” while others drew comparisons to the likes of Roger Penske and his presence in multiple different types of racing series and stated, “Penske races in many types of motorsports?”
A change in the landscape could be imminent
It could be possible that the exact motive behind Kressler’s statement is something the average fan might not be able to transcribe as legal proceedings especially involving large corporations can have multiple dimensions, with lawyers attacking each dimension differently at a time.
Moreover, Kressler is regarded as one of the leading personnel in the country when it comes to antitrust and sports law litigations. Jordan, who has built an entire empire around his now erstwhile basketball career might know something the average Joe does not.
It remains to be seen how things pan out, with the court’s decision on the injunction hearing due to be out by this Friday, just as the sport prepares to crown a champion this year.
Ryan Blaney, William Byron, Tyler Reddick, and Joey Logano will be seen contesting for the same this Sunday at Phoenix Raceway, with Reddick and the #45 team holding ground on behalf of 23XI and Jordan in the Final 4.
