Seven text messages between Chris Gabehart and Spire Motorsports co-owner Jeff Dickerson are missing from the record. Gabehart deleted the exchange on November 15, 2025, while negotiating his move to Spire, according to court filings. He says the messages concerned the framework of his job offer. Joe Gibbs Racing wants jurors to be allowed to infer that the deletion concealed damaging evidence; Gabehart and Spire argue that JGR has no proof the messages contained its confidential information.

The missing exchange is one of several disputes over what happened as Gabehart prepared to leave JGR, what information he retained and what he brought to his new role. The two sides are still fighting over the evidence that could determine whether JGR’s trade-secret claims hold up at trial, with Spire challenging both the allegations and the case’s readiness to proceed on schedule. Now, the financial stakes have come into focus.

“According to a court filing, ‘In filings tonight over whether, with all the recent document production and reports needed, the case can remain on a schedule for Feb. 1 trial, a Spire Motorsports brief states “JGR seeks nearly $150 million in damages” in its lawsuit against Spire and Gabehart,” as highlighted by FOX Sports reporter Bob Pockrass on X.

The demand is far greater than the $8 million-plus amount initially associated with the lawsuit, while JGR’s damages expert has reportedly valued the disputed trade secrets at $47.4 million.

The two figures represent different things. Spire says JGR’s expert places the damages associated with the disputed trade secrets at $47.4 million, while the nearly $150 million figure reflects the broader amount JGR is seeking. Pockrass suggested punitive damages could account for the difference, but the available reporting does not establish a confirmed breakdown.

Neither amount represents money awarded by a court, and JGR’s claims have yet to be fully resolved.

The latest filing also exposes a dispute over the evidence behind that claim. Spire says JGR has withheld documents, including its contract with Toyota Racing Development (TRD), and argues that the missing material undermines a damages case that relies on its expert’s valuation. That is Spire’s position, not a finding that JGR’s evidence is insufficient.

The disagreement centres partly on what JGR says was taken and whether Spire’s 2026 Chevrolet setups can be linked to protected information from JGR’s 2025 Toyota programme. Spire disputes that connection, arguing that JGR has not shown its setups were derived from the alleged trade secrets. The technical comparison matters because the case is no longer limited to whether Gabehart retained information; it also concerns whether that information was used by his new employer.

The conflict traces back to Gabehart’s departure from JGR after more than a decade with the organization. He joined the team in 2012, worked as Denny Hamlin’s crew chief and later became competition director. But the working relationship deteriorated, with Gabehart arguing that the leadership role he had been promised did not match the responsibilities he was given. In February 2026, he moved to Spire as chief motorsports officer, setting the stage for a legal fight between his former employer and his new organization.

JGR filed suit in February, accusing Gabehart of taking confidential information when he left and later alleging that Spire benefited from it. The dispute included photographs Gabehart admitted taking of internal JGR materials.

However, he maintained that the information was not shared with another organization, while Spire and Gabehart denied the broader allegations of wrongdoing. The court will have to assess the evidence supporting each side’s claims, including whether the information qualifies as protected trade secrets, whether it was improperly used and what damages, if any, JGR can establish.

The case quickly spilled into Gabehart’s new job. In March, a federal judge allowed him to continue working for Spire but restricted him from performing duties connected to his former role at JGR. A preliminary injunction followed in April, setting boundaries around his involvement in competition-related work. Those restrictions have since become another source of conflict, with JGR arguing that Gabehart’s activities at Spire crossed the lines imposed by the court.

By October, the legal fight had intensified over the precise scope of JGR’s alleged trade secrets and the evidence needed to support the claims. A court order required JGR to clearly identify the information at issue and directed both sides to produce final, as-raced setup sheets from the previous Cup Series seasons. The discovery process has also brought disputes over technical documents, emails, and the timing of evidence production.

That October order is central to the latest scheduling fight. On October 7, Magistrate Judge David Keesler ordered the parties to produce key technical records, including final race setups from the 2025 and 2026 Cup Series seasons. The order also covered other categories of material relevant to the dispute, including technical documents and competition-related records. JGR says the court-ordered production has left too little time to complete the remaining expert work under the existing deadlines.

JGR has asked to move several deadlines, including those for rebuttal expert reports, expert discovery and pretrial motions. It has not asked to postpone the February 1, 2027 trial. In its filing, JGR described the proposed schedule as “compressed – but it is workable,” arguing that the additional expert work could be limited to newly produced material and that depositions could be conducted in parallel. It also warned that delaying the trial would allow the alleged misappropriation and resulting harm to continue into another season before its claims are resolved.

Spire strongly opposes that request. It says JGR produced its final list of allegedly misappropriated trade secrets only after the court ordered it to do so and after fact discovery had closed. Spire also claims JGR produced more than 13,000 additional documents that it had previously withheld. According to Spire, the proposed timetable would leave it just five business days to respond to JGR’s new expert reports and force both sides to prepare for and depose 12 experts within five business days. It argues that the schedule would be prejudicial and asks the court either to retain the existing deadlines or extend the trial date.

The two sides also disagree over whether extending the case would create further disruption. JGR argues that a delay would prolong the alleged harm and distract key personnel into another racing season. Spire counters that the litigation has already been an “immense distraction” for the parties and their witnesses. The court’s decision on the scheduling dispute will determine how much additional time the parties have to address the new material, but it will not decide whether JGR is entitled to the damages it seeks.

For now, the nearly $150 million demand remains a claim, not a judgment. The next major question is whether the parties can complete expert discovery and pretrial motions under the existing schedule—or whether the court will grant more time as they prepare to argue over the alleged trade secrets, their use and the damages attached to them.