NASCAR petitions court with surprising request impacting 23XI owners amid lawsuit

Just 11 days out from the beginning of its trial against 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports, NASCAR has made a substantial request of the court. According to Matt Weaver of Motorsport, the defendants (NASCAR) have petitioned the court to exclude two of 23XI’s three owners from the courtroom pursuant to Federal Rules of Evidence Rule 615.

The order from Judge Kenneth Bell: “At the pretrial hearing, Defendants asked the Court to exclude two of 23XI Racing’s three owners from the courtroom pursuant to FRE Rule 615. The Court is continuing to consider that request. Each side is permitted to file a brief on the issue not to exceed five (5) pages in length, on or before 12:00 pm (noon) on Tuesday, November 25, 2025. No response or reply briefs are permitted.”

23XI is owned by Michael Jordan, Denny Hamlin and Curtis Polk. NASCAR wants two of them excluded from the courtroom during the trial. Rule 615 Excluding Witnesses states the following:

At a party’s request, the court must order witnesses excluded so that they cannot hear other witnesses’ testimony. Or the court may do so on its own. But this rule does not authorize excluding:

• (a) a party who is a natural person;
• (b) an officer or employee of a party that is not a natural person, after being designated as the party’s representative by its attorney;
• (c) a person whose presence a party shows to be essential to presenting the party’s claim or defense; or
• (d) a person authorized by statute to be present.

Full clarity on the matter will come sometime next week. It appears nothing is standing in the way of the two sides going to trial, which is scheduled to begin Dec. 1 in Charlotte, N.C.

How did we get here in NASCAR lawsuit?

Of the 15 Cup Series teams that hold the 36 available charters, 23XI and FRM were the only teams that did not sign the Charter Agreement in August 2024. They filed a joint lawsuit against NASCAR and its CEO Jim France that October, alleging monopolistic practices. 

Multiple attempts at reaching a settlement before trial have failed. Both sides are dug in and believe they have a winning case. Judge Bell, however, has made it clear he doesn’t see a winner here.

“It’s hard to picture a winner if this goes to the mat — or to the flag — in this case,” Bell said in June. “It scares me to death to think about what all this is costing.”