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It was only last year, and it’s already hard to remember how contentious the antitrust lawsuits between two NASCAR teams and NASCAR management got, now that both sides have settled into a comfortable, Kumbayah state of symbiosis.
But lest we forget, the France family—which founded and, until today, managed the series since it was founded some 78 years ago—took it on the chin. After the trial was over, the Associated Press wrote that the lawsuit, headed by NASCAR team owner and NBA legend Michael Jordan, “took a toll on the family, which settled the case after eight days of testimony that portrayed them as money-hoarding dictators who got rich while their teams were bleeding cash.”
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You did not need a scorecard to know that sentiment refers to NASCAR Chairman and CEO Jim France, who did not much expect to be running this empire at age 81. But Brian France, son of Jim’s brother, seemed to lose interest in running NASCAR between the time he became chairman and CEO in 2003, until he was relieved of the position in 2018 after an embarrassing and possibly explanatory arrest for driving under the influence.
Uncle Jim looked around and found no one named France who was capable of assuming control of NASCAR and its multiple affiliates, some of them, trust me, you’ve never heard of. There was a youngster who was learning the ropes, but as the head of NASCAR, you must deal with people who not only learned the ropes, but spun them out of three-strand twisted manila.
NASCAR President Steve O’Donnell speaks at the Chairman’s Breakfast hosted by Jim France prior to the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500.Getty Images
So Jim France, at 73, was back at the big table’s head seat on August 5, 2018. And there he remained until several sources leaked the news this afternoon that France had overseen a logical and certainly expected transition of power to Steve O’Donnell, 57, a 30-year veteran of NASCAR. While it took a while to get to the top, when it finally happened, it was a quick transition: O’Donnell was named NASCAR president just last year, and CEO today.
In an allied move that many France loyalists may appropriately applaud, 34-year-old Ben Kennedy was also promoted today to chief operating officer, from his current and slightly oddball job as executive vice-president and chief venue and racing innovations officer.
Ben Kennedy speaking at the NASCAR Awards Celebration in 2022.Getty Images
Kennedy was the first in the France family in years to seriously take up racing first-hand, working his well-financed way up from the junior classes at Orlando Speed World to become a competitive late model, then ARCA, then NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series driver, and then a promising NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts racer until he was virtually plucked from the driver’s seat in 2018 to make the inevitable march towards the NASCAR front office. He took it in stride, but the fact that he still owns a race team or two is telling. And encouraging.
Ben Kennedy is the only child of Lesa France Kennedy, granddaughter of “Big” Bill France, who founded NASCAR in 1949. Her father was Bill France, Jr., who was Jim France’s brother; Bill Jr. was born in 1933, and his brother Jim in 1944, about 11 years later. Lesa France Kennedy, 64, remains the very well-respected executive vice chair for NASCAR, handling a variety of business-related responsibilities. Lesa France married Dr. Bruce Kennedy, a surgeon, in 1988. He was killed in 2007 in the crash of a Cessna 310 that Kennedy was co-piloting on an hour-long flight to Lakeland, caused when the electrical circuits in the cockpit caught fire, generating thick, non-survivable smoke. Lesa France Kennedy recently remarried to Bill Christy, CEO of an event promotion company.
While management has indeed been rearranged, apparently unchanged is the ownership of NASCAR and its associated enterprises, most notably IMSA, which sanctions sports car races, including the Rolex 24 at Daytona. As a result of necessary disclosures at last year’s trial, it was revealed that Jim France owns 54% of NASCAR, and Lesa France Kennedy owns the other 46. Whether that changes remains to be seen—there were a lot of unknowns in the settlement between the Michael Jordan/Denny Hamlin 23XI race team and the other plaintiff, Front Row Motorsports.
And as a result of the settlement, conspiracy theorists are already having a field day, suggesting that 23XI’s driver Tyler Reddick’s five wins in the first nine NASCAR Cup races this year suggests bad acting behind the scenes. If anybody should be angry about that, it’s Bubba Wallace, who apparently isn’t getting the same engines as his 23XI teammate Reddick.
Anyway, expect to see Jim France hand over the keys to O’Donnell tomorrow at Talladega, where NASCAR is racing this weekend. We’ll put a bow on this with these comments from one of my NASCAR heroes, Dr. Dick Berggren, longtime NASCAR TV broadcaster, editor of Stock Car Racing magazine, and founder of Speedway Illustrated: “When Bill France’s cancer became so serious he had to quit being NASCAR’s top guy,” Berggren said, “Rockingham was the first race to happen after we got that news. In the early morning, everyone in the garage was very on edge. Who can possibly take over?
“When Jim France walked into the garage—which, at that time, he seldom did—the atmosphere changed to ‘NASCAR is going to be just fine.’ The entire garage had confidence in him. I’ve covered NASCAR for over 50 years and have found Jim to be one of the smartest the sport has had in all that time. He makes good decisions.
“Jim France has largely been behind the scenes, but keep in mind that he has been NASCAR’s top executive since his brother Bill died in 2007. He owns a bigger part of it than anyone else.”