Michael Jordan Takes The Stand In NASCAR Anti-Trust Trial Day 5

Michael Jordan departs the Charles R Jonas Federal Building on December 1, 2025 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Baldwin/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Michael Jordan has taken the stand in the NASCAR Anti-Trust Trial in Federal Court in Charlotte, North Carolina on Friday, December 5 and is in the midst of his testimony.

Jordan is the co-owner of 23XI Racing along with driver Denny Hamlin. The NASCAR Cup Series team along with Front Row Motorsports is suing NASCAR over anti-trust violations.

“Someone had to step forward and challenge the entity to understand that it is a real concern from our aspect,” Jordan testified, according to Adam Stern of the Sports Business Journal.

Jordan is one of the most famous athletes in the world after his legendary career in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards earned him induction into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. He is also a local hero after hitting the game-winning shot to lead the University of North Carolina to the 1982 NCAA Basketball Championship.

According to the Associated Press, Jordan was called to the witness stand Friday afternoon with U.S. District Judge Kenneth Bell wryly noting the courtroom and an overflow room nearby with a video feed were packed.

NASCAR Trial Includes Heather Gibbs Emotional Testimony

Jordan took the stand on Friday afternoon, after Joe Gibbs Racing co-owner Heather Gibbs gave an emotional testimony, comparing the pressure to sign the current NASCAR Charter Agreement to “having a gun against their head.”

Heather Gibbs is Joe Gibbs daughter-in-law and took the role as co-owner after her husband, Coy Gibbs, suddenly died on November 6, 2022, before the final race of the NASCAR Cup Series season at Phoenix Raceway.

In September 2024, teams were given just six hours to sign the current Charter Agreement, putting pressure on all 15 teams to sign an agreement without the concessions they had sought in negotiations. Thirteen teams signed, but 23XI and Front Row Motorsports refused.

Those two teams have been competing without the protection of a NASCAR Charter because they did not sign the extension on the new revenue model. A legal battle ensued, bringing the case to the Federal Courthouse in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Jenna Fryer of the Associated Press filed a report mid-day through Friday’s court procedure.

“The document was something in business you would never sign,” said Heather Gibbs, who is also a licensed real estate agent. “It was like a gun to your head: if you don’t sign, you have nothing.”

A NASCAR Charter is similar to a franchise used in other sports. A Chartered team is guaranteed a starting position in all 38 NASCAR races along with set revenue from NASCAR. NASCAR created the system in 2016, but when it came up for renewal, teams negotiated to make the Charters permanent to provide a solid foundation financially for each racing organization.

When the 112-page extension to the new agreement was given to the teams to sign in September 2024, they had just six hours to review the document and sign.

Gibbs testified the organization was “devastated” the current agreement did not include permanent Charters. She sent NASCAR leadership a letter in May 2024.

NASCAR’s Reaction To Heather Gibbs Letter

According to Fryer’s AP report, NASCAR president Steve O’Donnell, who testified this week, was asked about a text message he sent to Ben Kennedy, nephew of Jim France that read: “Jim is now reading Heather’s letter out loud and swearing every other sentence.”

He was referring to NASCAR Chairman Jim France, the grandson of NASCAR founder Bill France and the son of former NASCAR Chairman Bill France, Jr.

Jeffrey Kessler, the attorney for the plaintiffs, questioned NASCAR President Steve O’Donnell to what France was saying as he read the letter, O’Donnell instead said the chairman never swore.

“That’s what I wrote, but he was not doing that,” O’Donnell testified. “We were all taken aback by the letter. I think Jim was frustrated, as we all were.”

During Heather Gibbs testimony, she went into detail the reason the team as “devastated.”

“Everything was going so fast, the legacy of Coy, the legacy of J.D., everyone at JGR was very upset,” Gibbs said during her testimony and said her father-in-law called NASCAR chairman Jim France pleading for a resolution.

“Joe said, ‘Jim, you can’t do this,’” she said. “And Jim was done with the conversation.”

Heather Gibbs Concern For Joe Gibbs After NASCAR’s Charter Decision

In continuing testimony, Heather Gibbs said she had to leave to take her son to a baseball game in Chapel Hill and left worried about her father-in-law, who was 84 at the time, according to The AP report.

“I left him sitting in the dark, listening to his blood sugar monitors going off,” she testified. “We decided we had to sign. We can’t lose everything. I did not think it was a fair deal to the teams.”

Joe Gibbs is both a Hall of Fame NASCAR owner and NFL Hall of Fame coach. He led the Washington football team to three Super Bowl titles and JGR has won five Cup Series championships.

In a lighter moment to her testimony, Heather Gibbs joked it should be six, but Hamlin let one slip away in November. Hamlin drives for JGR but is co-owner of 23XI.

With 450 employees at Joe Gibbs Racing, Charters for four Cup cars along with outside sponsorship and investors are important to keep the team financially solvent. It has invested heavily in NASCAR and enters its 35^th season of competition in 2026.

“It’s the most important point, a permanent place in their history books,” she testified. “It is absolutely vital to the teams for us to know we have security, it can’t be taken away, to know what we’ve invested in is ours.”

Heather Gibbs Offended By NASCAR Executive

According to Heather Gibbs testimony, she said NASCAR Commissioner Steve Phelps offended her by saying JGR spent recklessly on its race team. The letter was introduced into evidence Thursday.

“We’ve put 32 years into investing and building a dream, building careers, building families, and building NASCAR. If the financial model made sense, we would not have had to work with an outside investor,” she wrote. “If our teams were financially healthy and did not solely rely on sponsorship, I would sleep better at night, not worrying about when the torch is passed on.

“We have invested not only our time but our family in this sport. We have raised champions and buried their leaders, all while continuing to embrace the historical roots of NASCAR,” she added. “So, with all due respect, please understand that when you tell us it doesn’t make sense to partner with us after 7 years is dejecting and truly disappointing.”

More NASCAR Trial Details

Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports indicated on X “NASCAR was told before jury came in that growing the sport is not a defense. Judge: ‘growing the sport is another way of saying increasing the revenues of NASCAR.’”

Pockrass also reported NASCAR had stressed throughout trial that the teams knew about the September 6 deadline on Aug. 30 and included the following email and edit summary as a court document:

“Dear Mr. Hamlin and Mr. Jordan:

“We thank you for your continued engagement in our discussions regarding the Charter Agreement and appreciate your continued patience as we have taken input from many of the Charter Member holders during this process, including the most recent input from Jeff Gordon on behalf of the Team Owner Council.

“We believe we’ve made meaningful movement around the term extension and the tie to a floor of the current aggregate Pool Money amount if the next media rights agreement is greater to or equal to the current media rights. We also believe the more consistent communication between NASCAR and the “Teams through the Team Advisory Committee will provide input from the Teams earlier on in decisions that may affect the Teams, and the Competition Committee will continue to work diligently to find efficiencies wherever possible.

“The two areas we cannot agree to are (i) a most favored nation clause; and (ii) running the Driver Ambassador Program through the Teams. This Agreement is between the Team and NASCAR and NASCAR needs flexibility to allow variance based on a case-by-case analysis with each of its Teams. Whether it’s a sponsor right that can’t be extended to all or an exception, like the 4-car rule, NASCAR needs to be able to work with Teams to permit things that an MFN would restrict. What we can say is that today the Pool Money on Exhibit B is the same for all the Teams. However, NASCAR may need to modify Exhibit B based on the number of executed Charter Member Agreements that we receive.

“We have heard from you that the Driver Ambassador Program is not popular with the owners, but we truly believe that through developing Driver star power and Driver brands, it’s the best way to connect to new audiences and grow the business for all of us. We are willing to keep you in the loop and coordinate with you regarding scheduling, sponsorship issues, and any other conflicts, but we need the ability to directly incentivize the drivers in order to help grow the sport, which has been a challenge in the past.

“As you’ve heard we’ve announced our exciting upcoming 2025 schedule. which encapsulates the return to our roots at Bowman Gray and the international expansion into Mexico. With the announcement of the schedule and welcoming back both our old and new broadcast panners, NASCAR needs to solidify all aspects of the 2025 season. To that end, we would like to close the loop on the Charter negotiations and shift the focus to planning for all the great things ahead. In order to do that, we need to receive your executed Charter Member Agreement(s) no later than close of business on September 6, 2024.

“Sincerely, Steve Phelps

“Please find attached:

Chart scanning setting forth a summary of the new edits Redline from the August 14, 2024, draft from EM Executable Charter Member Agreement(s)”

The NASCAR Trial is ongoing, but Judge Bell instructed both sides that it needs to be wrapped up by the end of next week because of a third week of the trial could lead to a jury revolt.