Denny Hamlin, the Cup Series driver and co-owner of 23XI Racing, on Tuesday asked whether SiriusXM NASCAR Radio would apologize for previous comments hosts on the channel have made regarding the recently settled antitrust lawsuit brought by two teams, 23XI and Front Row Motorsports, against NASCAR.
In a message posted on X responding to a post by Sirius host Larry McReynolds, Hamlin asked if McReynolds, a former Cup Series crew chief, or anyone on the channel was planning to apologize now that the lawsuit was settled last week. McReynolds, who co-hosts the “On Track” show on Sirius Channel 90, was a staunch critic of the lawsuit, once saying the suing teams would “regret” their decision.
“Good morning. Now that the case is settled and the evidence is out will you or anyone on channel 90 be issuing an apology for what you all said about 23XI/FRM when the lawsuit was filed?” Hamlin wrote.
“I believe it was ‘how dare them for trying to come in and change the sport. 23XI hasn’t been around long enough and FRM wasn’t good enough’. Also how about ‘I don’t know what their problem is, 13 other teams signed it’. Just to name a few examples,” Hamlin wrote in a subsequent post.
23XI and FRM filed an antitrust lawsuit last October against NASCAR and NASCAR CEO and chairman Jim France, who owns a majority share of the company. Hamlin co-owns 23XI with Michael Jordan and Curtis Polk, Jordan’s longtime business partner.
Larry McReynolds, at Daytona 500 media day in February 2024. (James Gilbert / Getty Images)
A day after the lawsuit was filed, SiriusXM’s “Speedway” show hosted Jeffrey Kessler, the attorney for 23XI/Front Row, for an interview. Kessler was interviewed by host Dave Moody, who also works for NASCAR-owned Motor Racing Network, and laid out in detail his clients’ position that NASCAR was operating as a monopoly. Some listeners noted the interview was not part of the full episode replay that was later posted to the Sirius site, which Hamlin deemed censorship.
“While censorship is a big topic in today’s media world, Channel 90 might be the poster child,” Hamlin posted on X on Oct. 3, 2024. “An interview didn’t go the way they hoped after our attorney continued to state fact after fact even tho they tried their best to refute, they have since edited/deleted that interview off of their channels because the narrative doesn’t fit their beliefs. If that doesn’t convince you of the bias then nothing will.”
On the day of the lawsuit, as Kessler gave a press conference detailing the complaint, McReynolds and co-host Danielle Trotta discussed it on Sirius. Trotta read Kessler’s comments on the France family using the sport as its own “piggy bank.”
“That France family built this from scratch,” McReynolds responded. “And a lot of us (have) made a lot of good livings doing it in this sport.”
Trotta went on to read the lawsuit’s depiction of the race teams as “victims.”
“Victims? Give me a break,” McReynolds said. “… Now we’re victims?”
Last December, McReynolds said in an episode of “On Track” that he was hearing the lawsuit “does not sound like it’s going in (the teams’) favor” and suggested that most of the owners of the 13 teams who signed the disputed charter agreements would say they could “build their business” the way things were.
“I just think 23XI and Front Row (are) going to regret the day they ever did this,” he added.
Both parties involved agreed to a historic settlement last Thursday that included NASCAR granting permanent charters to all 15 organizations that hold the franchise-like licenses that guarantee certain revenue streams and entry into every premier Cup Series points race. The most recent charter sold for $45 million, and their value is expected to climb considerably now that NASCAR has assured there will be no end date to the charter system, which before was set to expire in 2031.
As part of the settlement terms, 23XI and Front Row received other concessions that were applied to the other 13 charter-holding teams. 23XI and Front Row also received damages, though the exact figure is unknown.