A federal judge has ruled that Chris Gabehart, former Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) competition director, can continue his employment with Spire Motorsports. However, he is restricted from performing the same duties he held at JGR.
Gabehart’s New Role and Court Ruling
Gabehart now serves as the chief motorsports officer at Spire, a role encompassing most of parent company TWG Global’s racing properties. He recently appeared as a Spire employee at the IndyCar event in St. Petersburg, Florida. Gabehart is permitted to attend the race at Phoenix Raceway, where both NASCAR and IndyCar events are scheduled.
U.S. District Judge Susan C. Rodriguez in the Western District of North Carolina issued the ruling following an attempt to find a resolution after Friday’s hearing regarding JGR’s motion for a restraining order. A full hearing concerning Gabehart’s employment is scheduled for March 16.
Data Theft Allegations
JGR has made a separate complaint, alleging that Gabehart stole data to give to Spire. JGR claims the data theft caused over $8 million in damages and has named Spire as a defendant. This complaint has not yet been addressed.
Judge Rodriguez has ordered Gabehart to return all data and material he possesses from JGR to the team. Joe Gibbs founded the NASCAR organisation in 1992 after winning three Super Bowls as Washington’s football coach. Gibbs co-owns JGR with his daughter-in-law, Heather. The team currently fields Cup cars for Christopher Bell, Chase Briscoe, Ty Gibbs and Denny Hamlin.
Spire’s Response
Spire co-owner Jeff Dickerson addressed the allegations. “Spire takes trade secrets very seriously, and we’re a lot of things, but we’re not hypocrites,” he said. “We don’t want anybody else’s stuff, other than Hendrick, obviously. We’re happy. The facts are the facts and I don’t have any ill will toward JGR.
“I think we got thrown in because that’s where it landed. I’m happy with the decision and we take trade secrets super seriously.”
Spire has an existing alliance with Hendrick Motorsports, providing them with access to Hendrick data. Spire fields Cup cars for Carson Hocevar, Michael McDowell and Daniel Suarez, and also has a Truck Series team. JGR does not have a Truck Series team.
JGR’s Statement
Gibbs and his daughter-in-law were not present in court on Monday but did attend Friday’s hearing.
“We are pleased with today’s ruling by the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina for a temporary restraining order enforcing the terms of our contract with Chris Gabehart,” JGR said in a statement. “We will continue the legal process to protect our information and fight for what is right for our race team, our employees, and our partners.”
- Gabehart joined JGR in 2012 as an engineer.
- He worked his way to crew chief.
The legal proceedings are ongoing as JGR seeks to protect its information.