O’Reilly Auto Parts Series team owner explains his ‘relief’ after seeing controversial texts from the NASCAR lawsuit

Tommy Joe Martins, the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (previously known as the Xfinity Series) team owner, didn’t respond with shock or anger when recent controversial text messages were unsealed as part of an antitrust lawsuit against NASCAR. Instead, Martins expressed relief to the leaked messages.

There was likely a text exchange between the then President Steve Phelps and VP Brian Herbst that left Martins upset. The screenshots of the texts were shared by FOX Sports’ journalist Bob Pockrass last Sunday in the course of the antitrust lawsuit involving 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports versus sport.

Martins, who has spent more than a decade navigating NASCAR’s financial and competitive hierarchy as both a driver and a team owner, took to X to react to a series of leaked text messages tied to the lawsuit. The owner of Alpha Prime Racing, however, didn’t mention which text from the lawsuit frustrated him, but he basically said, “everyone involved.”

“Every text from everyone involved just confirms everything I’ve felt for 10+ years. It’s not a disappointment to see it all, it’s a relief. I wasn’t just dreaming it up. It was actually happening.” Martins wrote on X.

Tommy Joe Martins

@TommyJoeMartins

Every text from everyone involved just confirms everything I’ve felt for 10+ years. It’s not a disappointment to see it all, it’s a relief. I wasn’t just dreaming it up. It was actually happening.

As the texts of Phelps and other sport's executives became public, they included harsh words about team owners. One of the most discussed leaked messages came from Phelps, who reportedly referred to team owner Richard Childress as a “stupid redneck.”

If a historic owner like Childress, worth hundreds of millions and responsible for decades of success, could be described that way by the sport’s executives, then what does that say about not-big teams like Alpha Prime Racing and so many others in the sport?

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“I’m just disappointed all the way around”: NASCAR legend opened up about Phelps’ insulting comment about Richard Childress

The commissioner of the Cup Series, Steve Phelps, is under fire after his text messages with other executives surfaced in which he brutally insulted Hall of Famer and team owner Richard Childress. One message reads:

“Childress needs to be taken out back and flogged. He’s a stupid redneck who owes his entire fortune to NASCAR”

Expressing his frustration on Phelps' leaked text, NASCAR legend Mark Martin wrote on X:

“This has been going on in the sport I love. I’m just disappointed all the way around. There were plenty of problems before Charters and the RTA but I’m not sure how you ever fix all this now.”

Mark Martin

@markmartin

This has been going on in the sport I love. I’m just disappointed all the way around. There were plenty of problems before Charters and the RTA but I’m not sure how you ever fix all this now.

However, there has been no public response from either Phelps or Childress.