13 of 15 NASCAR teams signed a new charter agreement
On Friday, NASCAR issued a new charter agreement to teams with a deadline of midnight to sign. 13 of the 15 charter teams signed the new agreement.
23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports are the lone teams that have not signed the new agreement.
With no agreement signed, NASCAR could attempt to reclaim the charters from teams that didn’t sign. That disaster scenario would possibly play out after the 2024 season.
NASCAR teams sign new charter agreement; 23XI Racing excluded
Rick Hendrick comments on 23XI Racing not signing the charter agreement
“I think we worked really hard for two years and it got down to, you’re not going to make everybody happy,” Hendrick said.
“And I think it got down to, I was just tired. Not everybody was happy. But in any negotiation, you’re not going to get everything you want, and so I felt it was a fair deal and we protected the charters, which was number one, we got the (payout) increase, I feel a lot of things we didn’t like we got taken out, so I’m happy with where we were.”
In regards to 23XI Racing and FRM not signing the new agreement.
Hendrick responded, “I don’t have a dog in that,”
He added, “I mean, it’s like, we’ve had so many meetings about this thing. I feel like the majority of teams felt like we got as much as we could and it was time to move on.”
NASCAR teams comment on ultimatum to sign charter agreement
Dale Earnhardt Jr comments
“I cannot believe this came down the way it did,” Dale Earnhardt Jr stated.
“I was really, really surprised that the teams split…If the teams were going to band together and really have leverage, they had to stay together…So when NASCAR started meeting them individually, that was going to erode the trust and confidence, and teamwork that the RTA had. And a lot of their leverage as a group went away.”
“I thought that the teams would hold out longer. I was a bit surprised that they signed, didn’t see that coming.”
Charters becoming franchises
“They’re not going to take away Michael Jordan’s charters,” Earnhardt Jr added.
“There may be a little bit of a disconnect between what NASCAR thought the charter system would be and what the teams think the charter system is.”
“The charter system wasn’t called a franchise for a reason. They weren’t considered franchises. This was going to lock you into the field.”
“So that they can then go to their sponsors and say we’re guaranteeing you 36 races a year. That was the main purpose of the charter. And if you have a charter you’re gonna be in the field buddy.”
“The teams have shifted that idea. That the charter is a franchise. Like owning the Indianapolis Colts. And I don’t think that NASCAR thought it would be that.”
The new charter agreement begins in 2025 and goes through the 2031 season.
NASCAR accused of threatening to revoke charters for agreement
