“Superior bargaining power and undue influence”: 23XI Racing's Curtis Polk slams NASCAR’s “predatory practices” in charter negotiations

Just days after Curtis Polk made a statement by wearing a T-shirt that humorously asked the media not to inquire about the charter agreement, he has come out in criticism of NASCAR's handling of their practices. Amid the latest charter draft being accepted by all teams except 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports, Jenna Fryer of AP Sports reported Polk's remarks on the topic on social media.

At the Southern 500 at Darlington, Polk silently protested by pinning a note on his shirt that read,

“Please don’t ask me about my Charter. I don’t want to disparage NASCAR and lose it.”

More recently, in the wake of 23XI Racing not signing the new charter agreement by the NASCAR-imposed deadline for teams, Polk addressed the media on Sunday, elaborating on his reservations about the agreement.

Fryer shared his comments on X (formerly Twitter):

"The contract offer took away essential rights, and we believe that all teams, including those who signed, may not have been given a true opportunity to negotiate or fully understand the implications of the contract terms.

"This isn't the 1960s and these predatory practices do not withstand scrutiny…."

"NASCAR has consistently refused to deal with 2311 — these negotiations, we are David facing Goliath. NASCAR has superior bargaining power and undue influence over the sport and the charter process."

The Athletic reported that the officials issued a midnight Friday deadline, cautioning that teams failing to sign the charter agreement could forfeit their charters. The directive led many teams to sign the agreement, albeit reluctantly.

Nonetheless, 23XI Racing, co-owned by Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan, along with Front Row Motorsports, owned by Bob Jenkins, have opted not to comply.

As a result, these teams stand alone in uncertainty, as they are the only ones without a finalized agreement following the deadline, leaving the future of their charters in jeopardy.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Denny Hamlin weigh in on NASCAR teams’ decision not to sign the agreement

The 23XI Racing team has publicly explained its refusal to sign the charter agreement by the stipulated deadline.

The team's statement said:

"23XI decided to not meet a NASCAR-imposed deadline last night to sign charter agreements for its two cars for 2025-2031. 23XI’s position, as stated in a letter to NASCAR, is that we did not have an opportunity to fairly bargain for a new charter contract. We notified NASCAR what issues needed to be addressed, in writing, at the deadline. [...] "

Following the news that 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports (FRM) had not signed the charter agreement, thus risking their charters, Dale Earnhardt Jr. shared his reaction on X.

Dale Jr. said,

"Holy 🐮."

Meanwhile, Denny Hamlin, when pressed for any comments on the matter, declined to elaborate on the statament that had already been made.

Hamlin told reporter Peter Stratta:

"I think it was all covered by the statement. I don't really have anything else to add."

The decision regarding the future of the charters for the two teams hangs in the balance, as the expiration of the current charter agreement this year looms large over NASCAR.