23XI Racing, the NASCAR team co-owned by Michael Jordan, said Saturday it skipped a deadline to sign a new charter agreement with the sanctioning body because “it did not have an opportunity to fairly bargain” for a new contract.
The two-car team owned by Jordan, active driver
Four charters remain held back by NASCAR, earmarked for a future manufacturer that might join Chevrolet, Ford or Toyota in the Cup Series. A summer proposal from NASCAR suggested those charters should go to NASCAR and that the France family that runs the series should be able to field teams.
NASCAR’s newest proposal to teams allegedly included an anti-disparagement clause.
The most recent charters were signed in 2016 and run through the end of the year, when the current television packages expire. Negotiations have been ongoing for more than two years, with teams content to allow NASCAR to finalize a new media package first so the teams have a clear idea how much money will be coming in.
Teams want a bigger share of the revenue pie, a seat at the negotiating table, a role in upcoming projects and deals and, most importantly, for charters to become permanent.
A charter guarantees a spot in any Cup Series race and thus part of the purse, and NASCAR has refused to even entertain that charters become permanent.
NASCAR had no immediate comment on the ongoing charter negotiations.
