Michael Jordan and Joe Gibbs' daughter-in-law are expected to testify Friday in a federal antitrust case against NASCAR. The lawsuit claims NASCAR acted monopolistically by refusing to make charters permanent. Charters guarantee spots in races and payouts, similar to franchises in other sports.
At least 4 countries pull out of 2026 Eurovision contest as Israel’s participation sows discordA county jail in Arkansas produces hundreds of ICE arrests under a program surging across the USAdm. Bradley tells lawmakers no 'kill all' order given in strike on alleged drug boatNASCAR chairman Jim France accused of stonewalling teams in antitrust caseChaos erupts at Indian airports as country's largest airline cancels flightsA vintage car graveyard in western Germany, in photosMapache se emborracha en licorería de Virginia y se queda dormido en el bañoNew FDA-approved glasses can slow nearsightedness in kidsThe World in PicturesDeadly Asian floods are no fluke.
They’re a climate warning, scientists sayFaulty glucose monitors linked to 7 deaths and more than 700 injuries, FDA warnsA dozen former FDA leaders lambaste claims by the agency's current vaccine chiefOne Tech Tip: Up your Christmas shopping game with AI toolsDon't forget pets when preparing for winter's cold. Here's what experts recommendPutin says there are points he can't agree to in the US proposal to end Russia's war in UkraineThe Afternoon WireZohran Mamdani and the Louvre make the list of most mispronounced words of 2025Man accused of planting pipe bombs before Jan. 6 Capitol attack is charged with explosives offensesDetroit's own crime-fighter RoboCop finally stands guard in Motor CityRaccoon goes on drunken rampage in Virginia liquor store and passes out on bathroom floorMysterious googly eyes go viral after appearing on public art in OregonDon't forget pets when preparing for winter's cold. Here's what experts recommendEating the wrong foods can keep you up at night. A new cookbook offers a better planDecades-old palm trees in Rio de Janeiro flower for the first — and only — timeWhere the blame will fall if ACA subsidies expire, according to a new pollWhat to know about the hepatitis B shot — and why Trump officials are targeting itKennedy's vaccine advisory committee delays vote on hepatitis B shots for newbornsOne Tech Tip: Want to turn off Meta AI? You can't — but there are some workaroundsCopa Airlines suspende vuelos a Venezuela; pilotos reportan intermitencias en señales de navegaciónMichael Jordan, co-owner of 23XI Racing, sits in his pit box during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Talladega Superspeedway, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Talladega, Ala. Front Row Motorsports owner Bob Jenkins, left, and 23XI co-owner Denny Hamlin arrive in the Western District of North Carolina on Monday Dec 1, 2025 in Charlotte, N.C. Michael Jordan, co-owner of 23XI Racing, sits in his pit box during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Talladega Superspeedway, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Talladega, Ala. Michael Jordan, co-owner of 23XI Racing, sits in his pit box during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Talladega Superspeedway, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Talladega, Ala. Front Row Motorsports owner Bob Jenkins, left, and 23XI co-owner Denny Hamlin arrive in the Western District of North Carolina on Monday Dec 1, 2025 in Charlotte, N.C. Front Row Motorsports owner Bob Jenkins, left, and 23XI co-owner Denny Hamlin arrive in the Western District of North Carolina on Monday Dec 1, 2025 in Charlotte, N.C. CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Michael Jordan and Joe Gibbs’ daughter-in-law were expected to testify Friday on the fifth day of the federalHeather Gibbs, the chief operating officer of Joe Gibbs Racing, wrote an impassioned letter to NASCAR chairman Jim France in May 2024 imploring him to make charters permanent for the sake of strengthening the family business. Charters are the equivalent of the franchise model used in other sports and in NASCAR it guarantees every chartered car a spot in all 38 races, plus a defined payout from NASCAR. The system was created in 2016 and during the two-plus years of bitter negotiations on an extension teams begged for the renewable charters to become permanent. When NASCAR refused to make them permanent and gave the teams six hours in September 2024 to sign the 112-page extension, 23XI and Front Row Motorsports were the only two organizations out of 15 to refuse and instead filed an antitrust suit.The discovery phase of the trial revealed a letter Heather Gibbs sent to France, who is now chairman of the series his father founded 76 years ago. “We’ve put 32 years into investing and building a dream, building careers, building families, and building NASCAR. If the financial model made sense, we would not have had to work with an outside investor,” she wrote. “If our teams were financially healthy and did not solely rely on sponsorship, I would sleep better at night, not worrying about when the torch is passed on. “We have invested not only our time but our family in this sport. We have raised champions and buried their leaders, all while continuing to embrace the historical roots of NASCAR,” she continued in the two-page emotion-packed letter. “So, with all due respect, please understand that when you tell us it doesn’t make sense to partner with us after 7 years is dejecting and truly disappointing.” The letter came up in Thursday in testimony by NASCAR President Steve O’Donnell, who was called as an adverse witness. O’Donnell in a text message told Ben Kennedy, nephew of Jim France, “Jim is now reading Heather’s letter out loud and swearing every other sentence.” Pressed by plaintiffs attorney Jeffrey Kessler as to what France was saying as he read the letter, O’Donnell said the chairman never swore. Kessler tried to force O’Donnell to reconcile what he wrote to Kennedy, but O’Donnell maintained that his boss was not cursing. “That’s what I wrote, but he was not doing that,” O’Donnell testified. “We were all taken aback by the letter. I think Jim was frustrated, as we all were.” Joe Gibbs ultimately signed the charter agreement, but Jenkins testified his rival team owner apologized for doing so.The teams had made specific requests in an attempt to improve their financial position, but the deal ultimately given to them on the eve of the start of the 2024 playoffs lacked most of their asks. NASCAR was founded in 1948 by the late Bill France Sr. and to this day is privately owned by the Florida-based family. Jim France is his youngest son. Kessler had a contentious session over more than three hours with O’Donnell and at times was shouting at the executive. He used internal communications among NASCAR executives to demonstrate frustration among non-France family members over the slow pace of negotiations and Jim France’s refusal to grant the teams permanent charters. The internal communications among executives showed the mounting frustration over the prolonged negotiations. As O’Donnell, Commissioner Steve Phelps and others tried to find concessions for the teams, they all indicated they were met by resistance time and again by France and his niece, vice chair Lesa France Kennedy.“Those are your words, not mine,” the executive replied.Earlier Thursday, O’Donnell testified that teams approached the sanctioning body in early 2022 asking for an improved revenue model, arguing the system was unsustainable. O’Donnell was at the meeting with representatives from four teams, who asked that the negotiating window on a new charter agreement open early because they were fighting for their financial survival. The negotiating window was not supposed to open until July 2023. O’Donnell testified that in that first meeting, four-time series champion Jeff Gordon, now vice chair of Hendrick Motorsports, asked specifically if the France family was “open to a new model.”Both sides speak of financial difficulties The extensions that began this year upped the guaranteed money for every chartered car to $12.5 million in annual revenue, from $9 million. Hamlin and Jenkinsit costs $20 million to bring a single car to the track for all 38 races. That figure does not include any overhead, operating costs or a driver’s salary, and Jenkins admitted he doesn’t spend that much. NASCAR has argued it has made huge improvements for the teams as it works to grow the sport. O’Donnell testified that NASCAR lost $55 million in the three years it held a race on the downtown streets of Chicago, and $6 million when it raced in June in Mexico City. But he said those events were critical in widening viewership and signing Amazon as a media partner. “It was a strategic investment because if not for that, Amazon would not have become a broadcast partner,” he testified.Judge Kenneth Bell admonished both sides over the slow pace of the trial, which was initially expected to take two weeks. Kessler said he didn’t anticipate wrapping up the teams’ side until the middle of next week. NASCAR plans to call Roger Penske as a witness. Penske, who is reluctant to testify, has said he’s only available next Monday. Christopher Yates, lead attorney for NASCAR, asked that Penske be allowed to testify that day but Kessler objected because it would disrupt the flow of his presentation. Bell sided with Kessler and told NASCAR to figure it out with Penske because “federal trials are an inconvenience.” The judge also said stretching the trial to three weeks is not acceptable, and while he’s hesitant to step in to push the pace along, he urged both sides to counsel their witnesses to stop being “reluctant to answer even the most harmless questions.”Fryer primarily covers motorsports for The AP with an emphasis on NASCAR, F1, IMSA and IndyCar. She is a New Jersey native based in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Roger Penske Michael Jordan Joe Gibbs Jim France Heather Gibbs Amazon.Com Inc. Legal Proceedings Compensation In Sports Trials Lawsuits Monopoly And Antitrust Industry Regulation General News NC State Wire North Carolina South Carolina Indiana Florida Alabama Local News For Apple Virginia FL State Wire SC State Wire TN State Wire Auto Racing AL State Wire Tennessee IN State Wire Sports Ben Kennedy Kenneth Bell Steve Odonnell Jeff Gordon Jeffrey Kessler U.S. News Christopher Yates Bob Jenkins U.S. News
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
NASCAR faces monopolistic bully claims in high-stakes antitrust trialA top NASCAR executive, Scott Prime, returns to the stand Wednesday in an antitrust case accusing NASCAR of monopolistic practices. The lawsuit, filed by 23XI Racing, owned by Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin, and Front Row Motorsports, claims NASCAR's charter agreements are unfair. These agreements are NASCAR's version of a franchise model.
Read more »
LeBron James Is Doing What Michael Jordan Never CouldWill Leitch writes of the end of LeBron James’s career that he looks like the anti-Michael Jordan. Look at how the Lakers are succeeding without LeBron in front.
Read more »
What The Gotham Awards Say About The State Of The Oscars RaceMichael B Jordan looks down in front of an orange sun in Ryan Coogler's Sinners
Read more »
Michael Jordan’s Original Air Jordan 4s Are Coming Back for the First Time Since 2019Jordan Brand is set to reissue Michael Jordan's fan-favorite Air Jordan 4 Retro 'Bred' with original details in 2026. Find early release info here.
Read more »
Michael Jordan set to testify in NASCAR antitrust trial, sources sayAndrew Greif is a sports reporter for NBC News Digital.
Read more »
Michael Jordan Continues to Inspire Jordan Brand, FNAA 2025’s Brand of the Year Award WinnerNigel Sylvester presented Jordan Brand president Sarah Mensah with the FNAA 2025 Brand of the Year Award Wednesday night at Cipriani 25 Broadway, NYC.
Read more »