If you were saddened last December when the antitrust case between NASCAR and 23XI Racing/Front Row Motorsports came to an end, have no fear. NASCOURT is back in session.
(Insert Law & Order theme.)
Joe Gibbs Racing filed a lawsuit against former JGR crew chief and competition director Chris Gabehart, who left the team after the 2025 season, on Feb. 19. The reason for his sudden exodus was not previously known.
The lawsuit paints a crystal clear picture of why the 44-year-old left the organization so suddenly. JGR alleges that Gabehart, who served as JGR’s competition director in 2025, asked to leave the team after his was denied the opportunity to have authority over all of its racing decisions.
According to court documents, JGR claims Gabehart took photos on Nov. 7, 2025, that included post-race audits after the NASCAR Cup Series season finale at Phoenix Raceway, analyses of team and driver data for the entire 2025 season, the team’s payroll details, contract lengths and compensation amounts, driver compensation amounts, revenue amounts from sponsors and partners, JGR’s 2024 pit crew analytics, and a detailed analysis of tires.
Gabehart reportedly then saved those photos to his personal phone and his personal Google Photos account.
The lawsuit alleges Gabehart also had a computer file entitled “Spire” (as in Spire Motorsports) in which he saved data, including a 141-page post-race report from a 2025 race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. JGR driver Denny Hamlin won the second race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in October 2025 It says he also saved more than 20 “eLap files,” which are reports created by JGR employees to add information regarding setups.
JGR says it conducted a forensic analysis of Gabehart’s computer in order to figure out that he had synced his JGR and personal accounts and put the aforementioned information into a “Spire” Google Drive folder, which was accessible to individuals other than Gabehart.
Documents also said that a job offer from Spire was given to Gabehart on Nov. 13, with Gabehart meeting Spire co-owner Jeff Dickerson on Dec. 2, one day before his departure form JGR was made public. On Dec. 4, however, Gabehart told JGR that he had to speak with other potential new employers, including Spire.
JGR also alleged that it learned on Feb. 11 that Gabehart is planning on becoming Spire’s chief motorsports officer, where, unlike at JGR, he would have control over the entire organization’s racing operations.
JGR is seeking $8 million in damages in the suit.
Gabehart’s departure from JGR was confirmed in December. It was rumored at the time that Gabehart was set to take a role with Spire, though his employment with the organization has never been confirmed. Matt McCall is currently serving as the competition director for Spire’s Cup program.
This is not the first time that someone inside JGR has been alleged to have sold sensitive information, however. In 2024, it was reported that a JGR engineer with other job offers on the table had sold setup information to a team that did not make the Cup playoffs in 2024.
JGR won 13 races in 2025, putting together its best Cup campaign since 2019. Much of the credit for such a successful season should go to Gabehart.
But it’s safe to say his name is probably mud inside the walls of JGR at the moment, if it’s even spoken outside of a few smoke-filled rooms where legal experts gather.
Turnover is a given in professional sports, especially NASCAR. But Gabehart’s departure was surprising, and the allegations made against him even more so, given how integral he was to the organization and how important it was in building his own career.
He served as JGR’s competition director for only one season before leaving due to reasons now very much in the public eye, and that will surely, if it hasn’t already, severely damage his reputation in the NASCAR garage area moving forward.
There’s an old saying in sports that if you ain’t cheatin’, you ain’t tryin’. But if you do cheat, you had better be pretty darn good at it.
According to JGR, at least, this lawsuit shows what can happen if you’re not.
A member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA), Samuel also covers NASCAR for Yardbarker, Field Level Media, and Heavy Sports. He will attend the University of Arkansas in the fall of 2025.
Despite this author’s assumption of guilty, it just doesn’t pass the smell test for me. This guy was running a lot of JGR, so he can’t be that stupid as to leave such a paper trail. On Google Drive no less. Not buying it. Sounds like someone set him up.