Fellow team owners Michael Jordan are heading to federal court for a hearing in the antitrust battle against NASCAR

CHARLOTTE, NC– Retired NBA great Michael Jordan and his co-owners of two NASCAR teams headed to federal court Monday for a hearing their antitrust battle against the stock car series for what they say is an unfair business model.

23XI Racing, owned by Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin, and Front Row Motorsports, owned by restaurant entrepreneur Bob Jenkins, NASCAR and Chairman Jim France Indicted in October after months of tense negotiations over NASCAR’s charter system, which is essentially a franchise model that includes revenue sharing.

The two teams say NASCAR gave all Cup Series teams a last-minute, take-it-or-leave-it offer in September that both 23XI and Front Row declined to sign. The owners claim the charter system limits competition by unfairly tying teams to the series. his tracks and its suppliers, and they called the French family and NASCAR “monopolistic bullies.”

The battle comes as NASCAR heads into its championship weekend, with the title-deciding race on Sunday in Phoenix, with 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick one of four drivers who could win.

U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney last week denied an expedited discovery request from 23XI and Front Row for NASCAR to produce documents ahead of Monday’s preliminary hearing.

“While the proposed discovery requests may help plaintiffs demonstrate a likelihood of success on the merits, they are not sufficiently specific,” Whitney wrote.

23XI’s Jordan, Hamlin and Curtis Polk were joined by Jenkins and Front Row president Jerry Freeze for the hearing, which is crucial to how next season will play out for the two teams.

23XI and Front Row can still participate next year, but as open teams. They argue for competing even under NASCAR’s open team agreement. There is a clause that would indemnify NASCAR from future lawsuits, so both teams want an injunction to continue their current lawsuit while they race.

The teams argue that NASCAR would not be harmed by the injunction because the series planned to have 36 chartered teams and allow them to compete as chartered teams while continuing the lawsuit maintained the status quo.

NASCAR now says it plans to run 32 chartered teams and eight open cars (instead of four) in the 40-car field each week. 23XI and Front Row currently each have two charters that they have not signed, and both have agreements with Stewart-Haas Racing to purchase one charter each.

Those deals have not yet closed and NASCAR has indicated it will not recognize the sales. NASCAR claims it is only honoring the 32 charter agreements signed in September.

NASCAR claims the two teams do not meet the requirements for an injunction because they can still compete as open teams and any damages they suffer if they win the case can be financially covered.

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