“I wouldn’t have filed it if I didn’t think I could win, “ Michael Jordan confidently declared in the past weekend at Talladega Superspeedway. While his drivers Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace grappled with a 28-car wreck, the details of the NASCAR lawsuit nibbled at the back of Jordan’s mind. His co-owned 23XI is joined by Bob Jenkins’ Front Row Motorsports as they seek to challenge NASCAR’s status quo and alleged monopoly and filed an antitrust lawsuit against the organization. To fight their battle, they have acquired the services of renowned antitrust lawyer Jeffrey Kessler.

Kessler is the Co-Executive Chairman of the well-known Winston & Strawn and comes with a pedigree of success in antitrust cases. Most recently he was responsible for the NCAA agreeing to pay $2.8 billion in settlements to former and current college athletes for illegally restricting their earning potential.

In its first move after over a week of the lawsuit, NASCAR appointed its defense lawyer, Chris Yates. Yates is a high-powered advocate in the sports industry – but he is mainly known for his settlement cases. Hence, NASCAR fans have predicted a swift victory for Jordan and Co. So how do the two lawyers stack up?

Well, the two lawyers have gone head-to-head a few times previously. Jeffrey Kessler helped to secure equal pay rights for the United States Women’s National Soccer Team against the US Soccer Federation, who were represented by Yates.

More recently, they were on opposing ends in the Name, Image, and Likeliness that ended up in a win for the athletes represented by Kessler, winning revenue-sharing opportunities. There were three different cases that settlement resolved; House v. NCAA, Hubbard v. NCAA, and Carter v. NCAA.

Yates did secure a victory for World Aquatics, dissolving two anti-trust lawsuits by the International Swimming League and another by swimmers Tom Shields and Katinka Hosszu. He also represented the Ultimate Fighting Championship in a class action lawsuit brought forth by over 1,000 fighters. The fighters claimed the MMA promotion violated antitrust laws and it led to a  $375 million settlement on September 26.

So the battle lines are drawn, but NASCAR fans do believe that 23XI and FRM have the edge given the successful history of their lawyer against his rival attorney.

Speaking after the lawsuit was first filed, Kessler said, “If NASCAR is willing to change, it’s got to be a significant change to make a fair system for the teams…It’s the same type of thing I went through with the NCAA, who had a choice to make. They could keep fighting in court and keep losing and have the new system thrust upon them or in that case, they finally sat down and said, we’re ready to transform the sport and we’ll be a part of it.”

In the suit, it is alleged that NASCAR has created a monopoly since they control the series and the majority of the tracks while also requiring the teams to purchase parts and pieces for their cars from a NASCAR-approved supplier. It also highlights the fact NASCAR limits opportunities for its teams by restricting them from participating in other racing series without its approval.

The grievances of Jordan, Denny Hamlin, and Bob Jenkins also stem from how NASCAR handled the recent charter negotiations putting a take-it-or-leave-it offer for teams on a deadline. 23XI and FRM were the only two teams that didn’t bow to the pressure and now want to bring a change to the sport. And the NASCAR community is all for their revolution.

As the news of NASCAR’s lawyer filtered in they couldn’t help but hand the victory already to 23XI and FRM.

NASCAR fans are rooting for Team Jordan

Ever since the sanctioning body dropped the new charter deal, the NASCAR community knew which side to choose. Teams got a 6-hour window to either sign the deal or risk losing their charters for next year. This apparent muscling tactic compelled most to sign, while the stronger ones stood aside.

Michael Jordan clearly stated his intention behind the lawsuit was a fairer deal. On October 6, he told The Atheltic, “We want a fair deal, but this wasn’t fair. I didn’t just file it for me. It’s for everyone.”

He further added, “I love the sport of racing and the passion of our fans, but the way NASCAR is run today is unfair to teams, drivers, sponsors, and fans. Today’s action shows I’m willing to fight for a competitive market where everyone wins.” NASCAR has not commented on the issue, but their hiring of Yates suggests they intend to make a strong defense.

Under Bob Prockass’ update, fans gathered to share their views on who would come out on top in the lawsuit. Browsing through Yates’ resume, a fan was certain about Jordan’s win. “So that means NASCAR is going for the settlement route.” This was purely based on Yates’ history with Kessler in the NCAA and the US Soccer Federation lawsuits, both of which went in favor of Jordan’s lawyer.

This was enough for one fan to mock NASCAR for calling a lawyer who just lost two cases to Jordan’s lawyer: “So basically they are throwing up the white flag.” Despite the verdict going in Kessler’s favor on the last two occasions, Yates remains a formidable lawyer, securing other trial wins for the US Soccer Federation.

Chris Yates represents Fanatics, sued by Panini for anti-competitive conduct through its long-term exclusive licensing deals. The sports apparel company also apparently ‘raided’ key Panini employee groups. One fan referred to this case and had no doubt Denny Hamlin and Co. would win. “The guy who is representing Fanatics and the ACC? @dennyhamlin enjoy the win.”

Somebody else also cited the twin instances – the NCAA and the soccer cases – where Kessler beat Yates. “That’s cool, dudes lost to Kessler before so this will be a great legal battle lmao.” Another fan deflated NASCAR’s hopes by making a pop culture reference: “Should have called Saul.”

Apart from success in NCAA and USWNT equal pay cases, Kessler also boasts a winning track record in NFL Free Agency and Salary Cap (1992), NBA Salary Cap (1995), and International Sports Antitrust (Formula 1) cases. This could be more reason for fans and indeed Michael Jordan to believe they will come out on top in this battle.

Evidently, all hopes are directed toward Michael Jordan’s win. Let us see how the NASCAR lawsuit unfolds in the coming weeks.