With Tyler Reddick having already won the regular season (it’s not inconceivable considering he is already a race up on the field in points), the other news surrounding the sports appears ho-hum.
Joey Logano already discussed his new aero look and alopecia before the Daytona 500, the Hendrick team is navigating how to have one of its drivers grab the reins and do something remarkable – with Alex Bowman just hoping he gets to finish a race in the near future – and we’ve gotten Brad Keselowski broken-femur stories ad nauseam.
Weʻre barely a month into the season. Some are trying to write narratives about the current state of drivers and teams based upon the fact that weʻve had two races that are the equivalent of a randomizer program and then a road course, which highlights some skills-specific drivers.
If thereʻs a trend to be gleaned, it is that there are no trends to be gleaned.
NASCAR Phoenix Entry Lists
The big news this upcoming weekend is that weʻre supposed to be excited that FOX has brought the NTT IndyCar Series and NASCAR together at Phoenix Raceway. Thatʻs a great selling tool for the network, but itʻs not like the two series will be forged into one racing dynamo and be taking the track together. But oh, the beautiful chaos that would be!
Nah, it’s just IndyCar playing the support to its racing daddy, NASCAR (well, that’s how some of the Indy drivers feel). Besides, if you want to watch what will be a mega-money racing disaster, Formula 1’s kickoff in Australia should be required viewing.
Instead of all the on-track action, the best battles in Cup have been off the track. Kyle Busch just waged war against an insurance company and settled out of court, which seems tantamount to a win. Think about it, how often does the little guy win court cases against big insurance companies? It’s basically a win for us all.
The best off-track action, now that 23XI and NASCAR settled their Netflix drama series, is the one transpiring between Busch’s old team, Joe Gibbs Racing, and its former head of something and once-crew chief Chris Gabehart. If you’re not up to speed (and why wouldn’t you be, because these courtroom sagas might be more compelling and air more dirty, corporate secrets than any garage-chatter talk might), this case rests upon JGR suing Gabehart because the two parted ways on sketchy terms and JGR believes Gabehart is some kind of automotive superspy.
Alleged superspy Gabehart reportedly took photos of JGR information with his personal cell phone and has purportedly taken those company secrets to Spire Motorsports, where he will begin his plan for world domination. Gabehart, ever the mastermind that he is, has already admitted to taking photos as argued. But to make things confusing, Gabehart also paid for forensic analysis of his computer, phone and probably his Alexa devices in an attempt to exonerate himself.
With those reports coming back clean, then this whole deal is much ado about nothing, but not so fast. The Gibbs organization is also seeking to enforce an 18-month noncompete clause, avowing that Gabehart is obligated to sit in timeout before joining another organization. This practice is somewhat standard in F1, as it means that engineers can not take learned elements from one team and be able to immediately use that knowledge for another.
Forcing Gabehart to go to the corner of the NASCAR room and wear a dunce cap would make sense if the two sides had played out the contract as written or had agreed upon the terms when divorcing. Instead, there’s confusion about the split, and who gets the dog and the timeshare or whatever.
If you’re reading the tea leaves, this whole thing is just pettiness wrapped inside triviality inside insignificance. Or so it seems. But really, this ordeal seems to be one of pettiness because Gabehart did that thing that ye shalt not do, that which is sacrosanct, to criticize the Chosen One.
While it may be laughable to think that the animosity between the two parties stems from Gabehart calling out the privilege and lack of results that Ty Gibbs enjoys and brings, there does seem to be some merit. Once Gabehart found himself on the defensive, he began to spill the tea, air the dirty laundry, throw the necessary shade to make the drama became one that was all about Gibbs.
In his comments about the dysfunction playing out at JGR, Gabehart stated, “It was my view that the No. 54 car should be managed and held accountable in the same manner as the organization’s other cars. Instead, the No. 54 car was managed directly by Coach Gibbs and everyone in the organization knew it.”
Up to Speed: Has Chris Gabehart Lawsuit Lit a Fire Under Ty Gibbs?
That Gabehart was pushed to take over as crew chief for Gibbs’ No. 54 added to his misery, as he had been hired to be the organization’s director of competition, not a steward for Ty Gibbs and the team.
Gabehart continued to unleash upon the winless driver by noting that “Ty Gibbs was not held to the same competition meeting attendance standards as teammates.” While comments like this one are the foundation for a he-said he-said tete-a-tete playing out in the media, it is reminiscent of the Arizona Cardinals leaking that Kyler Murray had a homework clause in his $230 million contract. Spin it however you want, it’s not a good look.
If we consider that Gabehart, having worked with Denny Hamlin for a number of years and risen to an executive position, would feel he had reached a point where his voice was respected and his authority welcomed, things make sense. That he purports to have been undercut would make anyone salty.
So get ready for Joe Gibbs, who, for some reason, everyone still feels the need to call coach, and his coterie to go on the positive PR spin. But the court is where the real story will unfold.
Stay tuned for another season of Law & Order: NASCAR.
Sounds more like Harvick leaving RCR and his comments about Dillon.
Good article Ava, but I wouldn’t go so far as to say Kyle is the little guy. The guy is worth millions and has the resources to fight it in court. He also has a large fan following which can certainly sway the court of public opinion, not that battling a shady insurance company needs one.