“I felt it was a fair deal”: $1B worth Rick Hendrick explains why he signed the charter proposal amid 23XI Racing’s announcement

AUTO: MAY 30 NASCAR Cup Series - Coca-Cola 600 - Source: Getty
AUTO: MAY 30 NASCAR Cup Series - Coca-Cola 600 - Source: Getty

Rick Hendrick recently shed light on his decision to sign the new charter agreement with NASCAR which will come into effect from the 2025 season. As per reports, all teams besides 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports have signed the new deal, which has been in the process of negotiation for the past year and a half.

Rick Hendrick, who is worth $1B (according to Celebrity Net Worth) and founder of Hendrick Motorsports, leads one of the most successful teams in Cup Series history. Co-owned by Hendrick and NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon, the organization has amassed 16 championship titles and 339 race wins across NASCAR’s top three divisions. HMS currently fields four Cup Series entries, each driven by a former champion, solidifying their dominance in the sport.

Initially slated to come out by January 2024, the 2025 charter drama continues. Reportedly, NASCAR forced the hands of charter-holding teams last Friday, hoping to secure the agreement before the playoffs commence. Hendrick Motorsports was one of 13 teams that signed the charter agreement and co-owner Rick Hendrick recently expressed his views on the decision.

“I think we worked really hard for two years and it got down to, you’re not going to make everybody happy. And I think it got down to, I was just tired. Not everybody was happy. But in any negotiation, you’re not going to get everything you want, and so I felt it was a fair deal and we protected the charters, which was number one, we got the (revenue) increase, I feel a lot of things we didn’t like we got taken out, so I’m happy with where we were.” Hendrick explained.

The new charter agreement allows the France family to own charters and run teams in the Cup Series. However, it does not yet provide teams with permanent charter status. This missing provision is said to be one of the reasons why 23XI Racing, co-owned by Michael Jordan, has not signed the agreement.


Rick Hendrick comments on 23XI and FRM's decision to reject new charter agreement

Cup Series teams 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports refused to sign the charter agreement last Friday night, further stirring up drama on the subject. 23XI Racing released a statement saying they "did not have an opportunity to fairly bargain."

As per the aforementioned source, Rick Hendrick also shared his thoughts on the bold decision made by the two teams. He said:

“I don’t have a dog in that,” Hendrick said. "Good luck to them. They feel very strong about their position, where they are, and I don’t even know what the reaction from NASCAR even was.”
"I think NASCAR, if they change anything for those two teams, that will go across the board. I’m pretty sure that would be the right thing to do because we, the teams that signed at the deadline, and then they make another deal a little bit better somewhere, that would be wrong,” he added

Meanwhile, no official statement has been made by NASCAR on the two teams' refusal to sign.

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Edited by Hitesh Nigam
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