In two days’ time, NASCAR will head into the courtroom for the jury trial of its biggest lawsuit yet, with 23XI and FRM alleging it of monopolistic practices in the stock car racing market. The Denny Hamlin, Michael Jordan co-owned team has largely been at the forefront of the proceedings, thanks to their star power, and when the trial begins, their names will most likely continue to dominate the headlines.
As for NASCAR, the sport appears to be gearing up for a challenging period, given the events that have unfolded over the last week. And as the clock ticks down on the trial, Hamlin can’t wait for the ‘truth’ to come out.
Denny Hamlin Lashes Out on Social Media Over the Upcoming Jury Trial
ESPN’s Ryan McGee recently pushed out an article about the upcoming jury trial, talking about why Jordan wanted to ‘tear at the fabric’ of stock car racing as we know it. It didn’t take long for the article and its update to reach Hamlin on X, prompting the 45-year-old to lash out at what was written.
Replying to McGee on his X feed, Hamlin held nothing back when he took a jab at NASCAR’s Director of Communications, Mike Forde. The JGR driver wrote that McGee should also have credited Forde for helping him write the article in an attempt to “switch the narrative.”
Per Hamlin, “Please give credit to @mforde for helping you write this propaganda piece that they want pushed to switch the narrative. Continuous lies about our stance, NASCAR’s motives for its actions, and continued message from the sanctioning body that everything is fine. Our fans know better.”
McGee came back to try to calm the situation down, asserting that he had done his best to hit the piece down the middle, even leaving a lot of blanks in the piece, which would be filled in once the lawsuit was over.
However, Hamlin’s next response was even more scathing, as he made sure to let the world know that he had had enough of the media houses intimidated by NASCAR pushing their narrative. He said that starting Monday, the lies would be over, and it was time for the truth to come out.
“Our fans have been brainwashed with their talking points for decades. Narratives pushed by media who are intimidated by them. Lies are over starting Monday morning. It’s time for the truth. It’s time for change.”
Several elements of the McGee article had set Hamlin off, but perhaps the most telling of them all was when one X user pointed out a particular section of the piece. Under the subheading “What is the endgame for each side?” McGee wrote that the complaining teams did not know what they wanted out of the lawsuit.
X user, Toyo, detailed that the teams have “literally listed what they want.” Hamlin took note of the same and replied “Exactly” to Toyo, clearing some air behind his fury.
All eyes now turn towards the Monday proceedings of the court, with Michael Jordan sitting in for all the sessions and testimonies, thanks to a smart move by Jeffrey Kessler’s team. As for Hamlin, the 23XI co-owner will certainly keep a close watch on how things proceed as the NASCAR world gets ready for what is truly the biggest lawsuit in the sport’s history.