NASCAR quiet offseason was interrupted by a judge’s gavel during Christmas week, and now we’re speeding through turn 4 and pointing toward the coming new year and the ensuing countdown to the lighting of the engines.
(Besides, it’s coming in less than three weeks for IMSA sports cars and in just over a month for NASCAR and its Preseason Clash.)
Get a grip of that shifter, show that clutch who’s boss, and let’s go through the gears to recap the previous week’s news – big, small, and downright embryonic.
GREAT AMERICAN READING Our Daytona 500 history book is a keeper and, yes, a great Christmas gift
First Gear: 23XI, Michael Jordan scores a victory (calls pending)
Sometimes this news gets lost in the hustle and bustle of the holidays, so in case you missed it during the rush, it was a decent Christmas for the 23XI and Front Row Motorsports racing teams. A federal district judge sided with both teams, and they will retain their franchise status (“charters” is the industry term) for the upcoming season.
Without the official charters, the two teams and their six cars (each adding a third car for 2025) would still be allowed to enter every race, but would do so without a guaranteed starting spot. Approved teams also race for a larger share of the financial pie than “open” teams who select races here and there on a part-time basis.
Legal architects design their system to make sure these things never end, of course, so NASCAR decided to appeal both teams’ previous appeal. Or? A court of appeal, of course, recognizable by its revolving door in front. So stay tuned.
Second Gear: What You Get for $160,000 in NASCAR
We all took a look under the financial hood and learned what sponsors get for putting their logos and colors on a Cup Series car in exchange for a few green flags.
The website Sportico, which specializes in the business side of sports entertainment, used an open records request to find out (and report) what Texas A&M University received for the $160,000 it paid to sponsor a Stewart-Haas race car in two 2024 races.
The opportunity for the Aggie colors and brand to be seen on network television is obviously part of the deal, even if those Stewart-Haas cars haven’t always been easy to find in 2024. But if you want spending $160,000 for a few weekends, you need certain guarantees, like…
∎ Texas A&M received 20 free, full-access VIP IDs for each of the two races (can you call that “free” if it’s as part of a $160,000 deal?)
∎ A day-long racing tour for university guests: “this is the inspection bay, over there is the Sunoco gas station…”
∎ A meeting with the driver sponsored by A&M, which must last at least 10 minutes and include photo opportunities.
∎ A minimum of four social media posts by the race team each weekend, as well as an agreement to “tag the school’s social media channels in all race-related posts.” Ask a young person to explain this to you.
That sounds like a ton of money for just two weekends of racing, but don’t worry about Texas A&M and its coffers. According to Sportico, the school’s institutional expenses for the previous year were $2.3 billion.
Third Gear: RFK adds a “pseudo” ride to its stable
The aforementioned Stewart-Haas team has closed shop, but that’s old news you already knew. However, co-owner Gene Haas retained one of the team’s four charters and will operate the No. 41 Ford with driver Cole Custer, who returns to the Cup Series after two successful seasons in Xfinity.
Aaron Kramer is the new crew chief for Team 41 after serving as chief engineer for RFK Racing’s No. 17 car, driven by Chris Buescher. On Sirius
Fourth Gear: A mid-season delivery coming for Denny Hamlin
It’s been an eventful few weeks for Denny Hamlin, co-owner of the 23XI team who obtained a positive court ruling last week.
Denny and longtime partner/girlfriend/fiancee (whichever term fits the modern model) Jordan Fish have announced that they are expecting their third child, due in June.
Take a look at this June racing calendar. Not only is there no weekend, but with a race on June 1, it’s one of those rare months with five Cup races scheduled. Prepare for the announcement of an emergency backup driver once June rolls around, but fear not, because in-season NASCAR babies are almost always born on a Tuesday.
— Email Ken Willis at [email protected]
This article originally appeared in the Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR: Christmas brings joy for Michael Jordan, Denny Hamlin. RFK News
