NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr. issues verdict on 'big loss' for Joe Gibbs Racing

NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr. has offered his thoughts on a shock Joe Gibbs Racing exit.

Whilst most arrivals and departures at this time of the year are centered around driver movement, it was recently revealed that Chris Gabehart had left his role at JGR.

Since the end of the 2024 season, Gabehart had held the role of Director of Competition within the organization, having previously worked as a crew chief to Denny Hamlin on the No. 11 Toyota.

Rumors now suggest that Gabehart could link up with Cup Series rivals Spire Motorsports, whilst JGR is yet to confirm who will replace the 44-year-old.

NASCAR TODAY: Joe Gibbs Racing concern emerges as Cup Series insiders make stunning financial prediction

Earnhardt Jr. on Gabehart exit

Given the significance of the exit, it was naturally a topic that came up on the recent Dale Jr. Download podcast, and the NASCAR legend admitted it had caught him off guard.

“Chris Gabehart, the Director of Competition at Joe Gibbs Racing, has left,” Earnhardt Jr said. “And the rumour is that he's heading over to Spire.

“But I was certainly shocked,” Earnhardt Jr. admitted.

The NASCAR legend later continued: “It's a big loss for for JGR, and it kind of makes you wonder what the general temperature is, I guess, when a guy like that's going to leave the building.

“It appeared that he had been elevated out of and away from the crew chief position from Denny Hamlin into the Director of Competition, which is a very critical, important role, and I thought, ‘Man, this guy’s perfect for this’.

“So it’s hard to imagine what would have been the result or the cause of the departure.”

Concerns for JGR

Earnhardt Jr. is not the only NASCAR insider who feels that this could be a big loss for JGR, either.

Bubba Wallace's spotter, Freddie Kraft, claimed it was a concern for the team on a recent episode of the Door Bumper Clear podcast.

"This is, I would say, a concern,” Kraft said. “It's hard to imagine how you let this guy walk out the door.

“He was so integrated in everything. The analytics side of everything, you know what I mean?

“I remember he was one of the ones that…all the superspeedway stuff we do, of all the plans or whatever you want to call it for how we're going to run these superspeedway races, he was very integral in parts of that.

“Now he takes all that wealth of information, and obviously I don't know how much he can bring with him as far as what he can share and what he can't share, he won't be using the direct setup from JGR, but he's smart enough to just come up with his own ideas.”