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NASCAR filed a complaint package on Wednesday against 23xi Racing, Front Row Motorsports and 23xi Racing co-owner Curtis Polk, citing the parties’ strategy to threaten, force and force NASCAR to meet their demands for better contract and financial conditions. “
A NASCAR lawyer said in a call with media on Wednesday morning that 23xi Racing and Front Row Motorsports’ actions “threaten the future of the charter system.”
Charter has been a place since 2016. They guarantee teams a starting place in each race and also offers a payment plan for teams that include almost 50% of the money from the new media rights that goes from this season to the 2031 season.
23xi Racing and Front Row Motorsports filed an antitrust lawsuit on October 2 against NASCAR and NASCAR chairman Jim France, saying: “Nascar maintained his monopoly position illegally for the presentation of a top-level share racing in the United States.
In the court documents submitted on Wednesday, Nascar says:
“Starts no later than June 2022, the defendants of the counter -claim have a conspiracy and agreement in unreasonable limitation and trade trade, which constitutes a violation of Article 1 of the Sherman Act. Curtis Polk orchestrated consciously and actively and participated in this illegal conspiracy, while working as a member of the TNC on behalf of the RTA and helped the participation in the scheme of 23xi and the front row, which also forms a violation of Article 1 of the Sherman Act.
“The conspiracy and agreement consists of an agreement to practice a joint action under -claim -defenders and others to limit competition, increase payments and otherwise claim their conditions for charter teams by agreeing on the conditions they would offer and agree to jointly negotiating the 2025 charges with NASCAR.”
“This is not the first time that 23xi and FRM have tried to raise their views and those of their advice on the race teams. And it is truly ironic that 23xi and FRM have tried to claim the antitrust laws to achieve their goals. This is because the undisputed reality is that it is 23xi and FRM, led by 23xi’s owner and sports agent Curtis Polk, who intentionally violated the antitrust laws by orchestrating anti -petitive collective behavior in connection with the conditions of the 2025 charges. “
As for Polk, Nascar says in his counter -claim:
“Polk has implemented this plan during 23xi-led negotiations on behalf of the members of the Race Team Alliance (“ RTA ”), and tries to withdraw more favorable financial and non-financial conditions than in the 2016 charter. Polk played an active role in coordinating the concentrated actions of the counter -claim and negotiated on behalf of all RTA members when working with Nascar on conditions such as the payments the teams would receive as part of the 2025 charter.
“Polk on behalf of all RTA members sent several requests to NASCAR to claim changes to the 2025 charter, and otherwise threatened that the RTA members would take unfavorable group actions if such claims were not met. Polk’s individual role was in the middle of the plot to use compound behavior to withdraw more favorable commercial conditions of NASCAR in the charter negotiations.
‘These strategies and threats have included a group of boycott, but are not limited, a group of boycott and endangered group boycotts from NASCAR meetings, including television -qualifying races, negative media campaigns, meetings with at least one NASCAR media partner to influence the ongoing NASCAR. Threats/coercion for other team owners not to break the branches. ‘The counter -claim -defendants’ competitive negotiation strategy had a negative impact on the 2025 charter and the Nascar’s renewal of its media rights agreements. And counter-claim defendants continue to ensure that teams ‘in line is’ in their positions against Nascar, even if the teams are horizontal competitors. ‘
Nascar chief advocate Chris Yates said this case would be part of the December 1st jurie hearing that brought the lawsuit by 23xi Racing and Front Row Motorsports.
Yates said in a call with reporters that although Nascar will participate in the court mediation, “I do not see a wonderful path to settlement.”
