NASCAR’s Jim France resigning as CEO. Who's replacing him, and what's next
There’s more reshuffling happening at the top of NASCAR, and this shift makes history.
NASCAR chief executive officer and chairman Jim France is stepping down as CEO and being replaced in the role by current NASCAR president Steve O’Donnell, an industry source confirmed to The Charlotte Observer. The news was first reported by Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic.
O’Donnell now becomes the first person outside the France family to lead NASCAR. America’s largest motorsport series began in 1948 — by Bill France Sr., the father of Jim, the outgoing CEO.
Jim France will remain as chairman of NASCAR, a privately owned company.
NASCAR is also promoting Ben Kennedy, who’s also part of the France family, to chief operating officer from his current position as executive vice president and chief venue and racing innovations officer.
The news comes a few months after Steve Phelps resigned as commissioner of the company. Phelps departed the top of the company after an acrimonious lawsuit and subsequent trial between the sanctioning body of NASCAR and two of its Cup Series teams — a 14-month process that revealed some pretty unflattering messages sent within NASCAR leadership.
According to Bianchi’s report, “O’Donnell is adamant” that the leadership restructuring had nothing to do with the timing of the trial, which was settled in December. The report said that a succession plan had been in place for a long time and required the league reaching a certain level of stability — which it has considering a lucrative media rights deal being secured through 2031, a new playoff format that has appeared to reignite NASCAR’s fan base, among other things.
France has been the CEO and chairman of NASCAR since August 2018, when then-CEO and chairman Brian France stepped down.
O’Donnell, 57, has been with NASCAR since 1996. His fingerprints are all over the modern sport — from the development and implementation of the Next Gen car, to the supervision of going to new tracks (and revitalizing old ones) and more.
An official announcement is expected this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, the site of Sunday’s Cup Series race.
