In many ways, 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports’ lawsuit against NASCAR comes down to accountability. Denny Hamlin has been an outspoken critic of the 2025 charter agreement, even before his team refused to sign the sanctioning body’s take-it-or-leave-it proposal on September 6th. Despite the threat of losing their charters, Michael Jordan, Bob Jenkins, and the Joe Gibbs Racing veteran refused to buckle under pressure, even though 13 other teams agreed to the terms with their backs against the wall.

Highlighting the reasons that motivated them to not put pen to paper, Hamlin revealed that by agreeing to NASCAR’s proposal, teams were being forced to give up any form of legal leverage that had which would hold the sanctioning body liable for its actions.

Denny Hamlin wants to hold NASCAR responsible

Tensions were rising between NASCAR and 23XI Racing even before the anti-trust lawsuit was filed. When Tyler Reddick won the regular series title at Darlington, none of the officials from the organization’s leadership were present to hand over the trophy. For some of the most iconic figures in not just NASCAR but the sporting world to publicly protest against the charter agreement was sure to make the headlines and that’s exactly what happened. The joint lawsuit between two of the so-called ‘rebels’ blames the sanctioning body for using unlawful means to maintain a monopoly and accuses NASCAR of breaching the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890.

However, if they had signed the agreement, 23XI Racing or Front Row Motorsports wouldn’t have been able to hold NASCAR accountable for their actions. Speaking in the Actions Detrimental podcast, Denny Hamlin said, “When NASCAR put that clause in the very, I’m not speaking out of turn here because all these things are public now, they put in there in the 12th hour, the agreement, they put in there, you may not sue us. If you sign this, you cannot sue us for anything basically that we have done through this process. You can’t sue us for anti-trust. They took away all of our rights. At that point, we said ‘Stop, we cannot sign this’ because we know this is wrong, but if we do, we release them from any wrongdoing.”

While the remaining 13 teams have distanced themselves from 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports’ joint lawsuit, they are keenly observing the developments from the sidelines. Even though they can’t publicly speak out against NASCAR or join in on the lawsuit, the outcome of the ongoing situation affects them too. If both teams manage to win in court or reach a settlement with favorable terms, all the other racing organizations stand to benefit, too. However, if the sanctioning body emerges victorious, the teams that have signed the proposal wouldn’t have to bear the brunt of NASCAR’s wrath. In many ways, it’s a win-win scenario for the majority.

As things stand, the lawsuit’s lead attorney Jeffrey Kessler believes that it may take a year or two for the case to go to trial. Meanwhile, a preliminary injunction will be filed that will allow 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports to compete under the new agreement for the 2025 season despite not putting pen to paper. However, if the injunction fails, both of them will be forced to compete as ‘open’ teams next year, which could result in significant financial losses going into each race. It’s fair to say that both teams are playing a risky game, but will it finally hold NASCAR answerable for its actions? Time will tell.

Hamlin is hoping to bring about a positive change in NASCAR

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In many ways, Denny Hamlin’s motivation behind becoming co-owner of 23XI Racing was to give back to the sport that he loves. Despite not winning a Cup Series championship yet, the Joe Gibbs Racing veteran has enjoyed a tremendously successful career, having secured 54 wins at the highest level, including three at the Daytona 500. While the France family has ruled the sport with an iron fist in the past, Hamlin believes that the time has come for a change and for the sanctioning body to be held accountable for its actions going forward.

Even though the road ahead will be full of uncertainties, Hamlin believes that it will be worth it if a positive change is made by the end of it. The 43-year-old said, “Jordan sent me an awesome clip from the Moneyball where I think John Henry’s saying the first one through the wall always gets bloody, but in the end, it’s because you’re threatening the status quo and threatening people’s jobs and things like that. I hope it’s not seen that way, just seeing that this is certainly an opportunity for us to try to promote change in the sport that’s positive for everyone. And that’s teams, drivers, fans, everyone. I feel like, certainly on our end, that’s actually been good for me.”

With five races remaining before the 2024 Cup Series season ends, Denny Hamlin has plenty to look forward to in the upcoming weeks. The Florida native remains in pursuit of his first championship trophy and is hoping to secure a spot in the Round of 8 with a victory at the Charlotte Oval. Given the circumstances, wouldn’t it be something if he makes it to Championship 4 and lifts the silverware at Phoenix Raceway later this year? The result might not go down well with the NASCAR leadership, but that would be the last thing on Hamlin’s mind if his longstanding dream finally comes true.