Michael Jordan's 23XI team could be facing a setback in their lawsuit against NASCAR according to an insider.
The legal case, which Jordan and team co-owner Denny Hamlin launched against NASCAR and its CEO Jim France, claimed that 'anti-competitive practices' were preventing fair competition in the sport.
23XI were one of just two teams on the grid that failed to sign, the other being Front Row Motorsports, who released a joint statement to NASCAR when the lawsuit was announced.
Speaking on the Door Bumper Clear podcast, NASCAR Insider Brett Griffin speculated other teams were not content with the terms offered NASCAR, saying: “I think they felt pressured to sign and I think they’re glad that these two organizations are bringing this to a legal matter.”
Griffin hosts a docu-series of his own, as well as being a NASCAR spotter, a role which requires him to keep a close eye on what’s going on behind, next to and in front of a race car, especially in the event of a messy crash.
He went on to claim in the podcast that this case will not be resolved quickly: “That will be for the court to decide. It’ll take forever. I heard the Kessler attorney say, ‘We hope to have this thing tried and heard in a year or two’. Well, good luck with that! How many years of history? What is NASCAR, an 85-year-old company at this point? No, 77-year-old company, if I were guessing. Good luck with that.”
If Griffin's comments are proved right, Jordan and Hamlin could be set for a lengthy battle in court, rather the opposite of what they had hoped for.