Judge halts sale of Rick Ware Racing's NASCAR team amid legal battle

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina judge on Thursday issued a temporary restraining order preventing Rick Ware Racing from selling its NASCAR team to T.J. Puchyr as part of an ongoing legal dispute with Jimmie Johnson-owned Legacy Motor Club.

The order remains in place for 10 days and Legacy is required to post a bond of $5 million by end of business Friday. Rick Ware Racing's attorneys had requested the bond amount be set at $150 million — the agreed purchase price between RWR and Puchyr, one of the founders of Spire Motorsports who now is a consultant to various race teams and sponsors.

Legacy is suing RWR over a dispute stemming from an agreement that Puchyr brokered for Johnson's race team to purchase one of Ware's two charters. The dispute is over which charter Ware agreed to sell and if the deal is for 2026 or 2027.

A charter is NASCAR's version of a franchise tag and guarantees teams entry into every race, plus monetary assurances. Ware currently uses one of his charters to field a full-time car for his son, Cody, and leases a second charter to RFK Racing.

Before he entered into a deal to sell a charter to Legacy, he already had an agreement with RFK to swap the charters currently in play and lease the other one to RFK in 2026. Then, in 2027, Ware planned to sell a charter outright to Legacy, which has a major investment from Knighthead Capital Management, a private equity firm worth over $13 billion.

Legacy requested both a preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order, in arguing Ware “has shown a willingness to lie to Legacy and to the Court about the status of the deal,” after Puchyr announced his plans in June to buy RWR's NASCAR team.

Puchyr had negotiated the charter sale and Ware had previously stated he had no intention of selling or otherwise transferring the charters while the lawsuit was pending.

Mecklenburg Superior Court Judge Clifton Smith issued a verbal order entering a temporary restraining order Thursday that blocks any sale for 10 days. Smith will consider Legacy’s request for a preliminary injunction.

Mark Henriques, counsel for Rick Ware Racing, argued both Ware and Puchyr intend to honor any deals but cannot meet the current terms of the charter purchase for 2026 based on the existing deal to lease a charter to RFK next season. RWR and Puchyr have said the plan is to lease to RFK in 2026 and sell to Legacy in 2027; Legacy says if Ware is selling to Puchyr, the charters contractually should be sold to Legacy.

“What we know is that these promises were made and this backdoor transaction was apparently entered into and is apparently a binding agreement, although not yet closed,” Legacy attorney Keith Forst said. “There is really no harm to defendant whatsoever, and there is tremendous harm to plaintiff Legacy if this closing of these assets in fact happens."

Ware's attorney disagreed and argued that Ware is trying to stay in business as a one-car team fielded for his son. Puchyr has made clear he intends to keep Cody Ware in the lineup after he buys the assets from Rick Ware.

“My clients did exactly what they had the freedom to do, work out a deal that meets the needs of the entity, and enter into a binding transaction that covers the entire business and yet keeps Cody racing,” said Henriques. “They’re trying to have their cake and eat it too since they lost the first preliminary injunction.”

Trial is currently scheduled for January, but Legacy has filed a second suit against Puchyr for interfering with its deal with Ware. Legacy has also terminated its consulting agreement with Puchyr.

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