Will the NASCAR Lawsuit Force Michael Jordan to Walk Away From the Sport?

You can just imagine it: somewhere, if it hasn’t happened already, a cartoonist is likely drawing Michael Jordan exiting a door marked “NASCAR”, with a basketball — emblazoned with 23XI Racing on it — under his arm.

In light of Thursday’s ruling by a three-judge federal appeals panel that decreed in favor of NASCAR and against 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports in an antitrust lawsuit and to borrow a well-worn sports cliché, could the NBA Hall of Famer seriously consider taking his ball and going home?

Jordan is everything NASCAR needs: he’s a billionaire, a fiery competitor when he played, has worldwide name recognition and has significantly helped the sanctioning body in its effort to bring in more fans of color.

What’s more, Jordan sold his majority share in the NBA’s Charlotte Bobcats, which he had owned since 2010, in August 2023 for $3 billion and to focus 100 percent of his energy and time into his race team, which he co-owns with NASCAR star Denny Hamlin. In turn, Jordan was able to put a good chunk of his Hornets cash-out into 23XI’s coffers.

Known for his legendary on-court trash talking while he played in the NBA, Jordan is likely not going to take Thursday’s legal setback in stride. He and his lawyers —and those of Front Row Motorsports — have the option of further appealing the appellate panel’s decision to the full appellate court or potentially even to a higher court.

But will it be worth it for Jordan to keep fighting — even though he’s never walked away from a fight in his life?

After all, Jordan is 62 years old. At that age, he doesn’t need the headaches that the lawsuit is bringing him, which is a challenge to NASCAR’s charter system. He could easily put 23XI up for sale tomorrow and likely would get back far more than he put into it to start with. Then he could play golf and smoke cigars every day for the rest of his life and likely be happier.

Hamlin potentially could try to buy Jordan out — although it’s questionable whether Hamlin has that kind of money available. Or Jordan could find another well-heeled individual to buy his share and join forces with Hamlin.

In addition, what becomes of Jordan & Co.’s legal strategy going forward now that 23XI and FRM have lost an injunction that required both organizations to be part of NASCAR’s mandatory charter system? Each team currently holds three charters apiece, meaning they have six charters in total — one-sixth of the 36 charters currently in effect in the Cup Series.

Could NASCAR pull the teams’ existing charters?

In light of Thursday’s outcome, and pending any additional appeals, NASCAR is in the proverbial driver’s seat. If 23XI and FRM do not quickly toe the line with NASCAR, the sanctioning body could potentially rule their existing charters as invalid and force both teams and all of their drivers to have to qualify for every single Cup race going forward, rather than having guaranteed starting spots due to the presence of their respective charters.

Plus, if NASCAR holds serve and wins any subsequent appeals by 23XI and FRM, the loss of the team’s charters could be quite costly, especially if Jordan or any of the other owners with both teams decides to sell their respective financial interests.

In other words, hypothetically, let’s say 23XI right now is worth upwards of $200 million, but that’s only if they have charters still in place. Without charters, 23XI could see its value plummet substantially on the open market, not to mention potentially lead current or future sponsors from pulling their support of the team and its drivers as well.

“We are disappointed by today’s ruling by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and are reviewing the decision to determine our next steps,” said Jeffrey Kessler, attorney for 23XI and Front Row, according to The Associated Press.

“This ruling is based on a very narrow consideration of whether a release of claims in the charter agreements is anti-competitive and does not impact our chances of winning at trial scheduled for Dec. 1.

“We remain confident in our case and committed to racing for the entirety of this season as we continue our fight to create a fair and just economic system for stock car racing that is free of anticompetitive, monopolistic conduct.”

Thursday’s decision by the panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond, Virginia, overturned an earlier ruling by the first judge to hear the joint suit by 23XI and FRM against NASCAR, and who ruled in the teams’ favor.

Both teams have 14 days to appeal the ruling to the full appeals court. However, given that NASCAR essentially won Thursday’s round, it has the prerogative to cancel both 23XI’s and FRM’s charters in three weeks unless the teams file an appeal, which appears likely.

Where does this leave Jordan?

Could Jordan theoretically leave NASCAR? Sure, it’s possible. After all, just before the start of this season, another high-profile co-owner — rapper PitBull, who was part-owner of Trackhouse Racing — announced he was leaving the organization immediately.

That was looked upon as a big hit for NASCAR’s outreach to Hispanic sports fans, particularly with next week’s first-ever Cup race to be held in Mexico City, and the fact one of Trackhouse Racing’s key drivers is Mexican native Daniel Suarez.

But honestly, even though he quit playing 23 years ago, Jordan still dwarfs PitBull in every way: global notoriety, overall popularity and, let’s face it, monetarily.

While PitBull’s departure hurt NASCAR’s Hispanic efforts, Jordan’s departure could be potentially devastating, not just for the sanctioning body’s efforts to attract more Black fans, but also for prospective Black investors in the sport going forward.