NASCAR’s France Era Ends: Jim France Steps Down as CEO

O’Donnell argues the succession has been planned for a while and isn’t lawsuit fallout, pointing to the fact that NASCAR has finally stabilized the business side: media rights confirmed through 2031, a charter deal done with the teams, and the playoff format settled. That’s a reasonable case, though the optics of handing off the CEO job months after a monopoly trial nearly went to a jury are what they are.

What Changes and What Doesn’t

On paper, O’Donnell now runs everything: the Cup, NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Truck series, the IMSA sports car operation, the company-owned tracks, long-term strategy, the financials.

In practice, Ben Kennedy is the name to watch. At 34, he’s been the driving force behind the schedule changes that produced the LA Coliseum exhibition and the Chicago street race, and he’s widely expected to eventually take the CEO job himself. O’Donnell has effectively been his mentor. This looks less like a break from the France family and more like a bridge to the next one.

Jim France never wanted the spotlight anyway. He took the CEO role in 2018 as an emergency fix when his nephew Brian France stepped down after a DWI arrest, and he’s spent the years since wandering the garage in plaid shirts looking more like a fan than an owner.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. told The Athletic he likes France’s “calm demeanor” and the fact that he “just shows up” and walks around like a regular person.

That’s the version of France the paddock will remember. The version that got deposed in federal court over antitrust claims is the one that probably made this week’s decision easier to sign off on.