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In a significant legal filing that casts a harsh spotlight on internal operations at Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), former competition director Chris Gabehart has vehemently denied allegations of trade secret theft, instead characterizing the lawsuit filed against him by his former employer as a punitive measure for his departure. The legal response, lodged on Wednesday, also details Gabehart’s stated reasons for leaving the prominent NASCAR Cup Series team, pointing to a pervasive culture of dysfunction with Ty Gibbs, grandson of team owner Joe Gibbs, at the epicenter of the discord.
The legal battle erupted last week when Joe Gibbs Racing initiated a lawsuit against Gabehart, seeking over $8 million in damages. JGR alleged that Gabehart engaged in a "brazen scheme to steal JGR’s most sensitive data" with the intent of transferring it to Spire Motorsports, where he was recently appointed Chief Motorsports Officer. The suit was further amended on Tuesday to include Spire Motorsports as a defendant.
Gabehart’s tenure at JGR spanned 13 seasons, during which he held various roles, including engineer and crew chief, before ascending to competition director for the 2025 season. JGR has also pursued legal avenues to prevent Gabehart from working at Spire, filing a restraining order and a motion for injunctive relief. An initial hearing on these matters is slated for Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina.
The core of Gabehart’s defense and his explanation for leaving JGR lies in his account of an organizational environment that he found untenable. According to excerpts from his legal filing, Gabehart stated, "I notified JGR that the job was not, at all, as advertised. I was promised a COO-type role overseeing all competitive operations with autonomy to lead. Instead, I found myself constantly intertwined with Coach (Joe) Gibbs, senior JGR executives, and family members when making even routine competition decisions—a dysfunctional organizational structure that I could not continue in."
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Gabehart’s filing specifically points to the direct involvement of Joe Gibbs in overseeing the No. 54 car, driven by his grandson Ty Gibbs, as a significant impediment to his responsibilities as competition director. He claims he was pressured to assume the role of crew chief for the then 23-year-old driver. Furthermore, Gabehart asserts that family members, including Ty Gibbs’ mother and JGR COO Heather, took an increasingly hands-on approach with the No. 54 car that conflicted with his mandated duties.
"It was my view that the No. 54 car should be managed and held accountable in the same manner as the organization’s other cars," Gabehart’s filing reads. "Instead, the No. 54 car was managed directly by Coach Gibbs and everyone in the organization knew it."
The filing details a prolonged period of pressure from Joe Gibbs and team ownership regarding the crew chief position for the No. 54 car. "Beginning early in the 2025 season, Coach Gibbs repeatedly pressured me to take over as crew chief of the No. 54 car. I consistently declined, explaining that as Competition Director, I did not believe this was the right move, that it would undermine the long-term development of the team, and that I did not want to be crew chief of the No. 54 or any other car," Gabehart stated. Despite his objections, he eventually relented under continued pressure. His involvement began with behind-the-scenes support for the No. 54 team, escalating to publicly serving as crew chief for nine consecutive races starting June 28, 2025. He eventually returned these duties to the original crew chief, Tyler Allen, against the wishes of ownership, having made his stance clear that he did not wish to remain in a crew chief role long-term.
Gabehart also highlighted instances where decisions concerning the No. 54 car were made without his "counsel or input." He further claimed that Ty Gibbs was not subjected to the same competition meeting attendance standards as other JGR drivers such as Christopher Bell, Chase Briscoe, and Denny Hamlin, suggesting a preferential treatment that impacted competitive parity and accountability within the organization.
The situation reached a critical point on November 6, when Gabehart was granted a meeting with Joe Gibbs to address the growing schism. According to Gabehart, both parties agreed that a mutual parting of ways would be the most amicable solution. He claims that JGR ceased paying him in November while negotiations for his departure terms were ongoing.
Joe Gibbs Racing’s subsequent lawsuit, however, paints a different narrative, alleging substantial financial damages and the potential for ongoing harm should Gabehart continue in a leadership capacity at Spire Motorsports.
In his defense, Gabehart stated that he commissioned an independent forensic audit of his personal devices, which he claims revealed "no evidence I transmitted, distributed, used or otherwise shared any JGR confidential information. No text messages. No email attachments. No dissemination whatsoever." He also presented a letter from Spire Motorsports indicating their willingness to undergo an audit to demonstrate that they had not received or utilized any proprietary JGR data. Gabehart contends that this offer was disregarded by JGR, who opted instead for litigation.
JGR’s lawsuit specifically cites the creation of a folder on Gabehart’s JGR account titled "Spire" and its synchronization with his personal accounts as evidence of his alleged intent to abscond with sensitive information. Gabehart does not deny the existence of the folder, but clarifies that its purpose was to evaluate the potential decision to leave JGR for Spire Motorsports.
"This lawsuit is not about protecting trade secrets—it is about punishing a former employee for daring to leave," Gabehart asserted in his filing. He further argued that granting injunctive relief and preventing him from working in NASCAR, the industry to which he has dedicated his entire career, would constitute a severe deprivation of his livelihood and his ability to practice his chosen profession.
The complete legal response filed by Chris Gabehart is expected to be a key component in the ongoing proceedings. The case is poised to offer a rare, albeit contentious, glimpse into the internal dynamics of one of NASCAR’s most storied organizations. The outcome of the restraining order hearing on Friday will be a critical early indicator of the direction this high-profile legal dispute will take.
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