Dropping the Hammer: O Jim France, Where Art Thou?

It’s been 2,143 days since Jim France — in the wake of Brian France’s arrest for driving while intoxicated — took over the reigns of NASCAR on Aug. 6, 2018.

One thing has been very apparent in the roughly seven years of his reign.

He doesn’t like to talk. At least not to us.

Based on a search of my email, the last time the 79-year-old France said anything official regarding NASCAR was in a statement on the passing of Cale Yarborough, released on Dec. 31, 2023.

Before that, it was a statement on the death of Ken Squire on Nov. 16.

The more you look, it’s more of the same.

It’s all just statements when there’s a death and a quote when someone is inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame or receives the Squier-Hall Award.

Only once in the last seven years has France actually volunteered himself to be asked questions by the media on the record in a public format.

It was on March 17, 2022.

That was the day that NASCAR formally announced its plans to field the Garage 56 entry in the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The last question of the press conference was directed at France, who was asked if the Garage 56 effort was his way of honoring his father, Bill France Sr.

“I think the best way to describe this is I’m doing it probably as my father was and my brother: as a racer,” France said. “I think everybody sitting at this table is a racer. We like challenges.

“It’s a tremendous opportunity for the sport that my dad started to further its reach with other fans, new fans. I’m also very much into the sports car racing and road racing, as dad was.

“There’s no way that I can honor my dad. He was so much farther ahead than what I am. But to try and carry on some of his legacy and continue what he and my mom started, it’s our family business, and we’re looking forward to continuing to grow it.”

Since then and in general, we really only have other people’s secondhand observations about France and his thoughts on NASCAR.

Last April, Brad Keselowski was asked how he felt about France and Lesa France Kennedy’s involvement in the sport.

“I talk to Jim and Lesa pretty periodically, and Jim specifically is at the track a lot and has an open-door policy, and he’s been great to me,” Keselowski said.

The RFK Racing co-owner waxed more poetically about France in 2020.

“I think we are really starting to see Jim France and his leadership style, I don’t want to say get comfortable, but kind of find their path and direction,” Keselowski said. “It has been a little bit of a breath of fresh air in some ways. He has got his own style, and I don’t think it is bad and I am not sure I would say that where we were before was bad.

“I thought there was room for improvement, but I feel like I am in the middle of a book and I am just reading chapters. And it is almost like there is a different writer now with these chapters, and Jim is writing them and they are pretty interesting and compelling.”

In September, Rick Hendrick was asked about the future of NASCAR — specifically in regards to what’s become a white-hot topic in the months since: charters.

“I spent a lot of time with Jim France when I was at the 24 Hours (of Le Mans), and he wants to see the sport grow and go,” Hendrick said. “He wants to build a fan base, wants to go to new tracks and do new things.

“I think NASCAR — I think we’ll get everything sorted out, and I think there will be charters. I don’t have any inkling that there’s not going to be charters.”

Flash forward to this year.

With negotiations still ongoing over a potential new charter agreement after 2024, Denny Hamlin was asked about 23XI Racing’s hopes of expanding to a third full-time team.

”I think it would have to align perfectly, but certainly with the climate that ownership is in right now, with the uncertainties of what Jim decides to do, it’s way too early for that,” Hamlin said.

And just last week, we were given a gift courtesy of ESPN’s Ryan McGee.

In a story titled “Stewart-Haas demise might ignite NASCAR’s ongoing charter feud,” McGee provided fresh France material, albeit still secondhand.

“It is NASCAR CEO Jim France, always known as the quiet one, who has repeatedly told teams they must accept the seven-year charter terms because, as they say he has said to them: “We can only support you as long as we are being supported.”

That wasn’t even the best part of the new France Canon.

A couple ‘graphs later, McGee included a quote from an unnamed team president.

“None of us were happy with Brian in charge, and we used to say, what would it be like if Jim stepped in?” the president said. “Be careful what you wish for, because this is Bill Jr.’s brother, after all.”

But this isn’t a column about charters.

It’s a column about France.

Thankfully, we have a general idea of what France thinks about charters.

However, I would like to hear his thoughts about pretty much anything at this point.

Every other head of a major sporting league in America has a regular presence in the public sphere and gets regular scrutiny.

Roger Goodell for the NFL. Adam Silver for the NBA. Robert Manfred for MLB. Gary Bettman for the NHL.

If there’s a “state of the sport” address for any of those leagues, it’s those guys who are getting asked the questions or catching flak.

But in NASCAR, every November, those questions are answered by President Steve Phelps.

If NASCAR does something, it does so with the approval of France.

Every once in a while, it would be nice if we got to hear France say why he approved something.

Obviously, Garage 56 was a big deal and sports cars are something important to France.

However, there are a lot of big deals in NASCAR in a given year.

The Daytona 500.

The championship race.

Or an inaugural race, like Sunday’s (June 15) at Iowa Speedway.

Any one of those would be the perfect time for NASCAR’s CEO and chairman to make an appearance, say some words and take some questions.

Fans of the sport deserve to hear from the guy in charge every once in a while.