All right, boys and girls. It seems like it’s actually (maybe) going to happen.
In 39 days, NASCAR and 23XI Racing/Front Row Motorsports will likely be going to battle in a courtroom over the future of the sport.
Did anyone else just get goosebumps?
Both parties in the antitrust lawsuit just went through two days of settlement negotiations and then presented their cases on Oct. 23 to Judge Kenneth Bell in a bid for summary judgments on portions of the case before the probable trial.
The negotiations were a bust. And, according to Motorsport.com’s Matt Weaver, “Bell has indicated that he wouldn’t rule on summary judgment as to not taint the jury.”
Oh, and Jeffrey Kessler, the lawyer representing 23XI and FRM, issued this statement afterward.
I’m no expert, but I don’t see someone who calls their opponent “retaliatory bullies who would rather focus on personal attacks and distract from the facts” being interested in settling.
Let’s not forget what 23XI co-owner Denny Hamlin tweeted on Oct. 7 in response to a Adam Stern post about NASCAR wanting to settle before the trial.
Oh, and a little surprise came this week from a very interested third party that isn’t technically part of the lawsuit: the NASCAR Cup Series drivers.
OK, technically the Drivers Advisory Council.
Now let’s all zero in on the second of the council’s three objectives.
If there were to be a settlement, the drivers want it to “provide a permanent and meaningful position for drivers collectively to have an independent voice on important issues in the sport.”
I’m just reading between lines here. Without saying the word, I’m interpreting this statement to mean the drivers are essentially saying, “we want to have a drivers union.”
If history’s any suggestion, if there’s anyone in this country that finds the words “drivers” and “union” allergic, it’s the France family.
In 1961 at Bowman-Gray Stadium, Bill France faced down a group drivers — led by Curtis Turner — who were attempting to unionize with the help of Jimmy Hoffa and his Teamsters.
According to a 2001 essay by Dan Pierce, France said, “Gentlemen, I won’t be dictated to by the union,” and that “Before he had ‘this union stuffed down [his] throat,’ he swore he would shut down his entire operation, plow it up and plant corn.”
France also told the drivers that no known member of a union could work for NASCAR, and “if that isn’t tough enough, I’ll use a pistol to enforce it. I have a pistol, and I know how to use it. I’ve used it before.”
That was more than 60 years ago, but I’m not holding my breath that the France family’s thoughts about being “dictated to” by a union have evolved in the time, though I’m sure no one would threaten the use of a gun now.
So, though anything could happen in the next six weeks — the trial is scheduled to begin Dec. 1 — I think it’s going to trial.
I’m more excited about the prospect of the trial than I am of the looming championship weekend at Phoenix Raceway.
Trials like what NASCAR could be experiencing in less than 40 days are a once-in-a-lifetime event. Championship weekends come and go (unless, of course, the lawsuit and its trial implodes the sport in ways we can’t imagine).
At this point, the biggest question I have about the trial (other than if it will come to pass) is if Hamlin will show up to court on Dec. 1 carrying the Bill France Cup or not.
Barring a last-second settlement rivaling what was seen between FOX News and Dominion Voting Systems in 2023, I’ll end this column by quoting my former boss at NBC Sports, Dustin Long.
Anytime race day faced a hours-long rain delay, Long would often say one thing.: “Smoke ’em if you got ’em.”
Daniel McFadin is a 10-year veteran of the NASCAR media corp. He wrote for NBC Sports from 2015 to October 2020. He currently works full time for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and is lead reporter and an editor for Frontstretch. He is also host of the NASCAR podcast "Dropping the Hammer with Daniel McFadin" presented by Democrat-Gazette.
You can email him at danielmcfadin@gmail.com.