Here’s What Happened in the JGR vs Chris Gabehart/Spire Lawsuit This Week (Sept. 12-18)

The ongoing lawsuit between Joe Gibbs Racing vs Chris Gabehart and Spire Motorsports got a new wrinkle this week when JGR filed a motion for a preliminary injunction against Spire.

Previously, while the court has determined that Gabehart misappropriated confidential information by taking photos of trade secrets, it determined that said photos could not translate into a likelihood of success on the racetrack for Spire.

JGR came back this week with new evidence they claim should change the court’s decision on the matter. They believe Spire is using those misappropriated trade secrets, collected by Gabehart, and continues to commit tortious interference in its hiring and employment of their former Competition Director.

A trial date is now set for Feb. 1, 2027 in the Western District of North Carolina. Judge Susan C. Rodriguez is presiding over the case.

Continue to read below to see the specific details of JGR’s newest motion.

Read all of Frontstretch’s content covering the JGR vs. Gabehart lawsuit here

• On Thursday (Sept. 17), JGR began its motion by doubling down on the following accusations: that Gabehart violated his non-compete agreement by going to Spire, violated his employment agreement to not provide similar services for another NASCAR Cup Series team that he did at JGR and that he is performing his role as chief operating officer at Spire while using JGR trade secrets.

• JGR also furthered its allegations against Spire that it is in violation of the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act, the North Carolina Trade Secrets Protection Act and that it induced Gabehart to perform in a similar role to his former position at JGR. The organization has previously accused Spire of creating the chief operating officer role simply to harm JGR.

• “The balance of equities lies in favor of JGR as Spire’s conduct is causing and, unless it is restrained, will continue to cause JGR irreparable harm. Conversely, there is no likelihood of harm to Spire if the requested relief is granted,” the filing stated.

• Before presenting its additional evidence, JGR listed the relief it is seeking from the court. JGR requests that Gabehart refrain from using, transferring, or copying any of its trade secrets and confidential information and return that information. It also asks that Gabehart be revoked from accessing Spire’s Cup competition materials, cease attendance at any Spire Cup activities or services and that Spire cease sending any of its Cup work product to or receiving it from Gabehart’s personal email and devices.

• In presenting its new evidence, JGR recounted that the court had denied injunctive relief against Spire because there was a lack of evidence suggesting that Spire had not acquired, used or disclosed any of JGR’s trade secrets. It said it believes those premises are now false.

• JGR alleged that documents, such as Gabehart’s Focus Plan and a CG Master spreadsheet that contains JGR’s post-race audits and analysis, were on Gabehart’s Spire-issued laptop despite denial from Spire that it had seen the Focus Plan.

• One accusation claimed that Gabehart provided trade secrets to competition personnel in a recorded video before his deposition. JGR has asked for Spire’s competition meeting videos to determine if Gabehart shared any more trade secrets but said Spire has refused to produce any.

• According to JGR, Travis Peterson, the crew chief for Michael McDowell and Spire’s No. 71 team, testified that Gabehart had disclosed JGR’s trade secrets.

• While Spire presented that it had revoked Gabehart’s Spire email access, JGR contended that it never monitored or restricted his personal email and computer, where the trade secrets in question allegedly exist.

• JGR also inferred that Spire pays Gabehart “substantial bonuses contingent on Cup Series results” and that never changed despite the court ordering a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction that prohibits Gabehart from performing similar services to his role at JGR.

• Additionally, JGR accused Gabehart of using its crew chief audits to help populate a spreadsheet to analyze Spire’s Cup races at the Daytona 500, EchoPark Speedway and Circuit of the Americas, and that the CG Master document’s metadata last show that he modified it on March 5. Those alleged modifications came after the TRO was enforced.

• JGR is filing a new preliminary injunction against Spire after initially being denied. The team argued that evidence shows that Spire recruited Gabehart in the fall of 2025 and that his compensation bonuses are nearly based strictly on Cup results.

• It also pointed to Spire’s hiring of Gabehart and another JGR employee as a factor in Spire’s improved performance, including placing both Carson Hocevar and Daniel Suarez in The Chase.

• In filing the injunction against Spire, JGR said it has demonstrated a likelihood of success by identifying trade secrets in Spire’s possession, the usage of that information, and that it implicates interstate or foreign commerce.

• JGR said it only needs to prove a threat of misappropriation to demonstrate a likelihood of success, but it can show an actual acquisition of the trade secrets by Spire.

• On these grounds, Spire allegedly knew Gabehart possessed these trade secrets when it hired him, JGR claimed, but they still proceeded to issue him a company laptop and access to its networks despite being on notice that he had misappropriated JGR’s confidential information.

• According to JGR’s new presentation of evidence, Gabehart not only stored the misappropriated data but used it by populating a CC audit with JGR’s framework with Spire data.

• JGR acknowledged it has not been able to prove whether Spire implemented misappropriated setups “due to Spire’s unwillingess to produce the setups without the court order,” but said Spire’s competition staff has admitted to implementing certain information for quality control and optimization.

• In its tortious interference claims, JGR said the inducement is not merely because of Spire hiring Gabehart, but the fact that he allegedly violated his non-compete covenant and continues to do so each time he performs competition services for the team.

• Spire is relevant to this lawsuit because, as JGR accuses, it pays him Cup Series performance-based bonuses and has not touched them, invites him to Cup competition meetings, and has failed to prevent him from providing similar services to his former competition director role.

• Finally, JGR averred that it will continue to suffer irreparable harm from Spire’s misappropriation and inducement.

• “The balance of equities lies in favor of JGR as Spire’s conduct is causing and, unless it is restrained, will continue to cause JGR irreparable harm. Conversely, there is no likelihood of harm to Spire if the requested relief is granted,” JGR stated.

• Spire responded to JGR’s motion on Friday (Sept. 18), saying that the confidential information and trade secrets JGR claims were stolen are technical aspects that are not owned by the organization.

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— Spire Motorsports (@SpireMotorsport) September 18, 2026