The highly-discussed antitrust trial featuring NASCAR, 23XI Racing, and Front Row Motorsports is complete with a historic settlement, but the discussion is not complete. Time remains to discuss some interesting nuggets from this trial lasting just over eight days.

All of the media members in attendance took extensive notes while watching Plaintiffs and Defendants present their cases. Phones remained in the locked cubbies, so all of the interesting details went into notebooks.

Not everything from more than 100 pages made it into articles or podcasts. Some details just fell by the wayside as more and more details came to light through evidence presentations, but now is the time to highlight them.

Nuggets from the NASCourt notebooks

Unorthodox and extensive testing

John Probst, NASCAR EVP and chief racing development officer, spoke extensively about the creation of the Gen 7 car and how NASCAR wanted to help teams limit costs. These details warranted attention, especially how they related to IP restrictions, but they did not become the most interesting part of his testimony.

Probst, who previously worked at Red Bull Racing and Chip Ganassi Racing, provided some details about how teams used some “unorthodox” testing methods to gather extra data. He noted that Red Bull, in particular, designated a Cup car as an ARCA car so that they could use it in racing conditions. NASCAR later shut that down.

Probst also said that Red Bull Racing spent $50 million to start and “well north of that” in the years after. Part of these costs stemmed from wind tunnel testing. The NASCAR executive indicated that the team flew vehicles to Germany for some tests, but he did not provide more details as the trial progressed.

Chip Ganassi Racing also took a different approach to wind tunnel testing. Probst confirmed the reports from decades past that the team had a tunnel under a mountain in Pennsylvania. This provided the opportunity to conduct extensive testing on the cars in conditions they could control.

An early experience at Daytona International Speedway

The majority of witnesses who took the stand spoke extensively about their areas of expertise while trying to support the case of the side that called them. However, they first spoke about their history in the respective industries.

This trend continued with NASCAR CEO Jim France. He spoke about how he began working at International Speedway Corporation right out of college. He also revealed that his time visiting race tracks began well before.

According to France, he began working at the Florida track when it opened in 1959. He said that he helped park cars, cut grass, and do various other jobs during his teenage years.

The Driver Ambassador Program

Many witnesses spoke about the Driver Ambassador Program, the initiative that NASCAR created with the 2025 Charter Agreement.

This program paid drivers to promote the sport. Those who earned the most points doing so earned the most money. For example, Joey Logano won the first term while Ross Chastain won the second.

Michael Jordan specifically testified that he wished NASCAR paid the teams directly so that they could then pay drivers. Instead, NASCAR takes the money and then gives it directly to the drivers.

How much money? According to NASCAR Chief Financial Officer Greg Motto, they set aside $14.5 million for the first year of the Driver Ambassador Program.

The Gen 7 genesis

Who created the Gen 7 car? According to France, the idea came from someone outside of the NASCAR corporation. He said that engine builder Doug Yates originally came to him with the idea of a “single-company” car.

France noted that Yates said he could not lead the development project due to his work at Roush Yates Engines, the company that provides engines to Ford-affiliated teams. France then chose to put Probst in charge of developing the Gen 7 car and stopping what France called “an arms race” between NASCAR teams.

Disputes about evidence ultimately don’t matter

A common conversation during the two weeks of trial focused on objections over evidence. The majority of mornings began with Judge Kenneth D. Bell ruling whether one of the legal teams could show a particular exhibit.

Some disputed pieces of evidence made it through, such as a 45-second video showing the parts and pieces of the Gen 7 car. Others had to be edited before being displayed on the screens, such as texts between Jeff Dickerson and NASCAR executive Scott Prime joking about a “Marcus Smith fleshlight.”

One piece of evidence never actually appeared after Judge Bell ruled in favor of NASCAR. The Defendants wanted to show a presentation regarding “Next Gen fan satisfaction,” but the Plaintiffs objected. Judge Bell ruled that the Defendants could use this piece of evidence, but they did not.

Consulting firms

McKenzie, a consulting firm, played a prominent role in early days of the trial. This company conducted a study of NASCAR in 2014 and determined that teams were struggling due to the business model while losing tens of millions of dollars.

This study sparked negotiations for the first Charter Agreement, as well as Prime making the leap from McKenzie to NASCAR.

As it turns out, McKenzie did prior work for NASCAR. Prime said that the first project between the two companies focused on officiating. NASCAR wanted to find more efficient ways to officiate races, so it turned to McKenzie. Prime did not detail exactly how the consulting firm helped in this process.

Denny Hamlin contract extension

Joe Gibbs Racing announced in July that Denny Hamlin had signed a contract extension. The veteran driver referred to this as his “last” deal that would take him to the end of his career.

This contract became a point of conversation during the opening week of trial as JGR co-owner Heather Gibbs took the witness stand. She confirmed that this is a two-year deal, and she said that the team negotiated the contract with Hamlin after signing the 2025 Charter Agreement.

Gibbs also noted that they had to get this deal done to keep Hamlin in the No. 11 Toyota Camry XSE. She said that he had another offer on the table from a different team. Gibbs did not provide further details about this suitor.

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