NASCAR team sues ex-staffer over theft of racing secrets

RALEIGH, N.C. (CN) — Joe Gibbs Racing filed suit in federal court Thursday, claiming that its former competition director stole confidential business secrets and planned to give them to rival team Spire Motorsports. 

Christopher Gabehart, who had worked for Joe Gibbs since 2012, stole racing secrets and used confidential business information to solicit at least one other employee to go work for Spire Motorsports, the racing company says in its suit seeking $8 million in damages.

Gabehart grew dissatisfied with his role over the course of the 2025 racing season, Gibbs Racing claims, and wanted additional oversight over other departments. 

“After his demands for additional authority were rebuffed by JGR’s [Joe Gibbs Racing] owner, defendant immediately embarked on a brazen scheme to steal JGR’s most sensitive information and use it for the benefit of a direct competitor in NASCAR — Spire Motorsports,” Gibbs Racing writes. 

Prior to Gabehart’s departure from Gibbs Racing on Nov. 10, 2025, the team says he stole confidential business information in order to help Spire, adding that he got a job offer from Spire three days later despite telling the plaintiff he didn’t have a job lined up. 

Gabehart purportedly added his personal Google Drive to his company laptop and uploaded over a dozen screenshots featuring confidential information. The racing company discovered the data and Gabehart participated in a review of his devices by a third party, which found 20 files of Joe Gibbs Racing’s racecar setup and additional photos he had taken of company trade secrets displayed on his company laptop.

The photos were taken with his personal phone to eliminate an electronic paper trail, Gibbs Racing says, and included race audits, 2025 analyses of team and driver performance — complete payroll information, including driver pay and revenue from sponsors —  Gibbs Racing’s pit crew analytics and detailed analysis of race car tires and their impact on race results. Gibbs Racing claims Gabehart also created a “Spire” folder in his Google Drive that included a 141-page file of analytics, simulations to determine the best possible car setup and a document comparing a Gibbs Racing driver to a Spire driver. 

Gibbs Racing argues Gabehart didn't have access to all of this information during the scope of his employment, accusing him of hunted it down in a plan to “improperly compete” with the company after moving to Spire. The stolen info is, Gibbs Racing says, “the exact set of confidential information and trade secrets any of JGR’s competitors would want in order to: (a) understand JGR’s processes, technological capabilities and payment structures that has led to JGR’s overwhelming success and (b) use them to improve their teams to obtain a competitive advantage over JGR.” 

Gibbs Racing also claims the stolen information has led to another employee exiting and working for Spire after being offered a significantly higher wage.

Gabehart misappropriated trade secrets, used unfair trade practices and violated the contract he had with Gibbs Racing, the team says in its suit. It asked the court to step in and restrain Gabehart from using any of the team’s confidential information or trade secrets, and force him turn over any data still in his possession.

In the suit, Gibbs Racing says it only discovered last week that Gabehart had plans to work as chief motorsports officer for Spire Motorsports, where he would manage Spire’s racing strategy and operations, despite informing the plaintiff that he didn’t plan to work in a similar role. The team had released Gabehart from a noncompete agreement, but terminated that contract earlier this month after discovering Gabehart had kept company data.

A representative for Spire Motorsports did not reply to a request for comment or confirm that the company extended Gabehart a job offer. Despite efforts to do so, Courthouse News was unable to reach Gabehart for comment on the lawsuit.

Both Joe Gibbs Racing and Spire Motorsports race in the NASCAR Cup Series. Gibbs Racing also races in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and Spire competes in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. 

The lawsuit comes a week after Legacy Motor Club filed an amended complaint against T.J. Puchyr, a racing consultant accused of leveraging confidential business information in an attempt to purchase Rick Ware Racing and its racing charters amid a legal dispute with Legacy. Puchyr was one of the founders of Spire Motorsports.

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