NASCAR makes a big decision favoring $3.5B worth Michael Jordan albeit on one condition

In a rare turnaround of events, NASCAR has made a big call favoring Michael Jordan's 23XI Racing, approving the charter transfer from Stewart-Haas Racing. This comes after Judge Kenneth permitted Front Row Motorsports to complete the charter deal while barring 23XI from doing so.

December 23 was a great day for the plaintiffs as Judge Kenneth remained unconvinced by NASCAR's emergency motion to put a stay on the preliminary injunction. Moreover, he ordered the sanctioning body to resume the charter deal frozen by the defendants after the lawsuit was filed.

However, $3.5 billion worth Michael Jordan's (via Forbes) 23XI Racing couldn't secure the same right because they didn't mention the frozen charter in the original motion, which FRM did and thus, got the grant.

But after several of Judge Kenneth's decisions favored the plaintiffs, the sanctioning body understood that 23XI would most likely get the approval. As a result, before Jordan's outfit filed for a separate motion, NASCAR agreed to let the charter transfer happen, albeit with one condition -23XI Racing won't use the defendant's approval as an argument in the upcoming appeals. 23XI agreed to the condition.

NASCAR insider Bob Pockrass explained the side deal. He wrote (via X):

"Knowing the judge most likely would issue injunction when 23XI files request and NASCAR would appeal, NASCAR has agreed to an injunction for SHR charter transfer to 23XI and 23XI agreed it won’t use the fact NASCAR agreed to it as an argument when NASCAR appeals."

It's worth mentioning that the sanctioning body agreeing on charter transfer without a separate motion saved significant time that would've lapsed in the motion, appeal, and verdict.

---

What led Judge Kenneth to overrule NASCAR's preliminary injunction win

Prior to Judge Kenneth Bell, Judge Frank Whitney was at the helm, addressing both sides' arguments. The latter was not convinced by the plaintiffs' irreparable harm claim as the defendants removed the 'release clause,' which earlier barred teams with an active lawsuit against NASCAR from racing in its warranted events.

Thus, 23XI and FRM were allowed to race as open teams as the lawsuit took its due course. But the plaintiffs appealed with new circumstances.

23XI and FRM submitted documents depicting emails from drivers such as Tyler Reddick, Bubba Wallace, Noah Gragson, and more. The communication contained concerning messages from the drivers, who expressed they could become free agents if the contract guarantee is not met- to provide drivers with a chartered NextGen ride.

Judge Kenneth took cognizance of the urgency expressed in the appeal. He opined that Reddick, the 2024 regular Cup Series season champion, potentially leaving 23XI was sufficient to justify a preliminary injunction. The Judge also outlined that the public interest is to let 23XI and FRM race as chartered teams, not as open teams without any guarantees.