Veteran staff homeowners Rick Hendrick and Roger Penske are preventing to restrict their participation within the antitrust lawsuit introduced by 23XI Racing and Entrance Row Motorsports in opposition to NASCAR. They imagine that they need to not have to offer full depositions or be deposed solely below slender circumstances.
23XI and Entrance Row filed the go well with in opposition to NASCAR in October final yr after they refused to signal the brand new constitution agreements. The groups alleged that NASCAR holds a monopoly over “premier stock-car racing” and abuses that dominance via its constitution course of. Lately, the 2 groups demanded that Hendrick and Penske sit for depositions. A federal decide granted that movement, saying each homeowners are on NASCAR’s witness record and could also be referred to as at trial, which is ready for December 1.
In response, the 2 NASCAR staff homeowners filed a movement on Friday, November 7, and requested the court docket to guard them. They argued that their solely agreed-upon position was “restricted testimony relating to non-confidential issues” in declarations they already submitted. They mentioned that the brand new deposition calls for search “extremely confidential” companies, monetary info from their groups, and discussions across the 2016 constitution deal.
The Athletic’s Jordan Bianchi shared the staff proprietor’s preliminary assertion on X.
“Hendrick and Penske, in view of their decades-long relationship with Jim France, agreed to offer restricted testimony relating to non-confidential issues on the trial of this case, however in a approach that didn’t pressure them to ‘take sides’ on this lawsuit. … That has now morphed into an effort by the Plaintiffs to hunt testimony probably relating to HMS’ and Penske’s extremely confidential monetary and different enterprise info,” a part of the assertion learn.
If the court docket permits depositions, Hendrick and Penske ask that questioning be confined to what they lined of their declarations.
In the meantime, 23XI Racing, owned by Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin, and Bob Jenkins’ Entrance Row Motorsports, acquired a authorized win final month after a decide dominated of their favor. He held that the market definition of “premier stock-car racing” can proceed with their argument that NASCAR controls that market.
Hendrick and Penske defend NASCAR Constitution system
In October, Roger Penske and Rick Hendrick additionally shared their statements defending the NASCAR Cup Sequence Constitution system.
The staff homeowners confirmed assist in NASCAR’s abstract judgment movement. Hendrick mentioned that the Constitution settlement was “important to the soundness of NASCAR” and highlighted that whereas all the pieces wasn’t excellent, he believed that the general deal secured important belongings for his staff.
$7.1 billion-worth Penske (in line with Forbes) additionally talked about that the constitution system was helpful for long-term fairness and shared that he additionally created an analogous system within the IndyCar Sequence.
Edited by Hitesh Nigam
