Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks reveals “worst part” of three-year-old tweet which led to ‘NASCAR Classic’ trademark

NASCAR Cup Series Cracker Barrel 400 - Practice - Source: Getty
Trackhouse Racing team owner Justin Marks on May 31, 2025, in Lebanon, Tennessee. Image: Getty

Justin Marks recently said that the worst part about one of his 2022 posts on X became a real headache because the idea he floated never came to life. The owner of Trackhouse Racing had suggested a "Classic" racing series using cars from different decades.

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Shortly after that, the sanctioning body filed for a trademark for "NASCAR Classic."

"What if we did the first ever NASCAR historic race event? 4 races: 70's, 80's, 90's, 00's. Let's find all the restored, track-ready cars in the US. Get a bunch of legends to the event. And celebrate the decades of history. N Wilkesboro? The Rock? Charlotte? What do y'all think," Justin Marks wrote.
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Many fans liked the idea. NASCAR moved fast to protect the name and concept, but never brought it to life. On Monday, December 1, Marks revisited the tweet after a fan account, Racing RoundTable, brought up the issue, and wrote:

"2 days later. Worst part is we never saw the event."
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Monday is also the first day of trial for Cup teams' 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports' antitrust lawsuit. The two teams accused NASCAR and its CEO of monopoly and anticompetitive conduct and challenged the updated charter agreements.

NASCAR's 2022 trademark also lists conducting motorsports events and producing television and radio programs. It also covers an online database with historical technical specifications and old rule books. With the trademark, NASCAR blocked any other group from using the name or launching a competing series.

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Meanwhile, Trackhouse, which debuted in NASCAR in 2021, has expanded outside the series to MotoGP and IMSA in recent years.

Trackhouse's Justin Marks on managing 'price point of getting involved in NASCAR' with other motorsport ventures

Justin Marks explained his team's financial strategy during an interview with Sports Business Journal. He said that Trackhouse tried to spend money carefully and invest only where it produces value.

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"There's a lot of ways companies can spend money, and we just need to make sure as an industry that the price point of getting involved in NASCAR doesn't outpace the value proposition. For us, we've been very successful at it just because we've been very authentic about our mission," Justin Marks told Adam Stern.
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The Trackhouse Racing MotoGP team began in 2024 and rides Aprilia RS-GP bikes. Their rider, Raul Fernandez, gave himself and Trackhouse their first MotoGP win at Phillip Island and finished seventh in the championship this season. According to reports, Trackhouse might switch to Honda in 2027.

Meanwhile, the team will compete in the 2026 Cup Series season with rookie Connor Zilisch, Ross Chastain, and a second season with road-course specialist Shane van Gisbergen.

Get the latest NASCAR All-Star race news, Xfinity Series updates, breaking news, rumors, and today’s top stories with the latest news on NASCAR.

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Edited by Hitesh Nigam
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