Joe Gibbs Racing has asked a federal court to enforce an 18-month non-compete clause against its former competition director Chris Gabehart that would prevent him from accepting a similar position with Spire Motorsports.
JGR contends in a document filed in US District Court in Charlotte, North Carolina, that since Gabehart wasn’t terminated “without cause,” the non-compete restriction applies.
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JGR is requesting a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction that would prevent Gabehart and Spire Motorsports from competing against JGR. Spire Motorsports has announced it has hired Gabehart as its chief motorsports officer.
The hearing on the request for the restraining order is scheduled for Friday.
JGR is seeking more than $8 million in compensatory and punitive damages and attorneys’ fees.
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Chris Gabehart with Denny Hamlin.
On Wednesday, the day after JGR added Spire Motorsports to its federal suit, a summons was issued informing Spire it had been named in JGR’s civil action. Spire must file its response within 21 days.
JGR maintains the injunction it requests doesn’t prohibit Gabehart from working in stock car racing or at Spire. It only prevents him from performing the same job functions he performed at JGR for “a limited and identified number of competitive teams.”
JGR contends that Gabehart’s actions “injured JGR’s standing in the marketplace by diminishing the value of its trade secrets, reducing JGR’s competitive advantages, and enabling Spire—and potentially other competitors—to unfairly compete against JGR in NASCAR races.”
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Gabehart’s former employer contends that allowing Gabehart and Spire to compete against JGR would be in violation of Gabehart’s contractual obligations. JGR also wants the temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction issued to keep the two from “retaining, using, disclosing, and misappropriating JGR’s confidential information and trade secrets.” The team also contends that Gabehart agreed not to recruit JGR employees for 18 months after his termination from JGR.
JGR contends that the day after Gabehart announced his decision to leave the Huntersville, North Carolina, team in November 2025, he sat down at his JGR issued computer while it was connected to JGR’s network, and for 15 minutes used his personal cell phone to take at least 20 pictures of several things including:
How much JGR pays its drivers.Complete team payroll details.JGR’s revenues from sponsors, partners, and other sources of income for 2024, 2025, and 2026 NASCAR seasons.JGR’s comprehensive post-race audit and analyses of team and driver performance for the 2025 NASCAR season. JGR’s pit crew analytics for the 2024 NASCAR season.
JGR also contends that Gabehart saved JGR files on his personal Google Drive showing:
JGR’s car setups during the 2025 season.Proprietary engine outputs and recommended gear shift points.The manner in which JGR sorts, picks out, and runs tires through a race.How JGR measures its own cars’ fuel usage during a race and predicts other teams’ fuel usage. 
A North Carolina native, Deb Williams is an award-winning motorsports journalist who is in her fourth decade covering auto racing. In addition to covering the sport for United Press International, she has written motorsports articles for several newspapers, magazines and websites including espnW.com, USA Today, and The Charlotte Observer. Her awards include the American Motorsports Media Award of Excellence, two-time National Motorsports Press Association writer of the year, and two-time recipient of the Russ Catlin award. She also has won an award in the North Carolina Press Association’s sports feature category. During her career, Deb has been managing editor of GT Motorsports magazine and was with Winston Cup Scene and NASCAR Winston Cup Scene for 18 years, serving as the publication’s editor for 10 years. In 2024 she was inducted into the NMPA Hall of Fame.Â