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”Cannot Interpret Basic Racing Data”—Spire Motorsports Mocks Joe Gibbs Racing’s ‘Outright Wrong’ COTA Lawsuit Claims

One race weekend is now a federal court exhibit. Chris Gabehart spent six seasons atop Denny Hamlin’s pit box before walking away from Joe Gibbs Racing in late 2025, and the fallout has been playing out in court ever since.…

By Chionia Libania Colaco · Essentially Sports

Published: Wednesday, 28 October 2026 at 5:49 PM

Key Things to Know

Spire Motorsports dismissed Joe Gibbs Racing's COTA setup misappropriation claims as flawed and based on cherry-picked data.
Joe Gibbs Racing is seeking nearly $150 million in damages over alleged trade secret theft by Chris Gabehart.
Spire argued that front-left spring rate changes evolved steadily across a year rather than through stolen proprietary information.

The Story in 60 Seconds

Spire Motorsports has strongly rejected Joe Gibbs Racing's trade secret allegations involving car setup data at the Circuit of the Americas. In a recent court filing, Spire criticized JGR's expert testimony as cherry-picked and flawed, denying claims that former JGR crew chief Chris Gabehart altered Spire's setups in violation of NASCAR impound rules.

The lawsuit, originally filed in February, accuses Gabehart of taking proprietary information when departing for Spire as chief motorsports officer. JGR is now seeking nearly $150 million in damages, but Spire maintains that forensic audits found no evidence of data transfer, with a trial scheduled for February 1.

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