Joe Gibbs Racing Rocked by Departure of Competition Director Chris Gabehart

If you thought the NASCAR offseason was going to be a quiet time for sipping eggnog and forgetting about pit road penalties, you were dead wrong. Just when the dust seemed to be settling on the 2025 season, the garage area got hit with a massive bombshell.

Chris Gabehart—the mastermind who helped turn Denny Hamlin into a championship-contending machine—has officially left the building.

According to reports confirmed by the Associated Press’s Jenna Fryer, Gabehart parted ways with Joe Gibbs Racing on Wednesday. Naturally, the team hasn’t said a word publicly because, well, that’s just how these corporate breakups tend to go. Silence is golden until the press release drops, right?

Let’s be real for a second: this is a huge deal. We aren’t talking about a tire changer moving shops. Gabehart was a pillar at JGR. For six years, he was the voice in Denny Hamlin’s ear, guiding the No. 11 team to 22 victories between 2019 and 2024.

1. The End of an Era at Joe Gibbs Racing

That includes back-to-back Daytona 500 wins, which is the kind of resume padding that usually guarantees you a job for life. In 2025, the powers that be at Joe Gibbs Racing decided to shake things up. They moved Gabehart out of the crew chief seat and upstairs into the role of Director of Competition. The idea, presumably, was to spread his genius across the whole organization rather than hoarding it all for Hamlin. On paper, it looked like a promotion. In reality? It seems like it might have been the beginning of the end. While Hamlin managed a second-place points finish with new crew chief Chris Gayle, the magic just felt… different. And now, less than a year into his executive role, Gabehart is walking out the door.

2. The Ty Gibbs Project

One of the biggest storylines regarding Gabehart’s move to the Director of Competition role was his involvement with the rest of the roster, specifically Ty Gibbs. The grandson of the team owner tore up the Xfinity Series, winning a title in 2022, but his transition to the Cup Series has been a grind. Despite the resources and the talent, Ty has yet to park the No. 54 Toyota Camry in Victory Lane for a Cup race. Gabehart was supposed to be the guy to help unlock that potential. With Gabehart leaving, you have to wonder what the mood is like in the Gibbs camp right now. Losing a strategic mind like that doesn’t just hurt the spreadsheets; it hurts the development of the future stars. So, where does a guy with Gabehart’s resume go? He’s not going to sit on the couch and watch races on TV. The internet detectives and garage insiders—including YouTuber Eric Estepp—are pointing fingers squarely at Spire Motorsports. If the rumors are true, this is a massive flex for Spire. They’ve been aggressively expanding, hiring talent, and generally acting like they want to be the next Hendrick or Gibbs. Snatching up a Director of Competition from a powerhouse rival is exactly the kind of aggressive move that changes the pecking order on Sunday afternoons. It’s not confirmed yet, but where there’s smoke, there’s usually a burning set of Goodyear tires.

3. Meanwhile, Denny Hamlin’s Wallet is Doing Fine

While the organizational structure at Joe Gibbs Racing is crumbling a bit, Denny Hamlin is busy dealing with his own drama in the courtroom. During the ongoing antitrust trial between 23XI Racing and NASCAR, Hamlin dropped a casual bombshell about his own finances. While being grilled on the stand, Hamlin confirmed his annual salary with JGR is somewhere in the ballpark of $14 million. Must be nice, right? It’s a fascinating peek behind the curtain of NASCAR financials, something we rarely get to see. While he’s fighting for a bigger slice of the pie for team owners, he’s certainly not hurting for cash as a driver. However, you have to wonder how Hamlin feels about losing Gabehart completely. Sure, they weren’t working directly as a driver-chief duo in 2025, but having your old war buddy in the war room is a safety net. Now, that safety net is gone, likely heading to a competitor. The 2026 season kicks off soon with the Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium on February 1. Joe Gibbs Racing now has a massive hole to fill in their competition department with very little time to do it. Losing a crew chief is tough. Losing the guy who oversees the competition strategy for the whole building? That’s a crisis. Whether this leads to a dip in performance or just a chaotic few weeks of hiring interviews remains to be seen. But one thing is for sure: the 2026 season just got a whole lot more interesting, and we haven’t even started the engines yet.

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