NASCAR’s Denny Hamlin set for major crew change after JGR shakeup

There is a crew chief shuffle at Joe Gibbs Racing. Chris Gabehart, the former crew chief for Denny Hamlin the past six seasons, will become Joe Gibbs Racing’s new competition director and Chris Gayle, the crew chief for the No. 54 squad, will take over crew chief duties for Hamlin’s No. 11 team. The new crew chief for the No. 54 will be announced at a later date.

“We have a lot of pride in the depth of talent we have throughout our organization,” said Joe Gibbs, owner and founder of Joe Gibbs Racing.

“Chris Gabehart will now be an asset across all four of our teams as competition director and we thought it was important to have him transition into his new role immediately. Chris Gayle will bring his own perspective to the 11 team while also maintaining the consistency and continuity they have developed with Denny (Hamlin) over the past several years. While we are still in the process of finalizing the new crew chief for the 54 team, we believe all these moves ultimately make our team stronger as we prepare for 2025.”

Gayle has previously worked as crew chief for Joe Gibbs Racing Xfinity Series team from 2013-2016 and his team earned 20 race victories. In 2017 he switched to Furniture Row Racing and took control of the helm as crew chief for one season before heading back to Joe Gibbs Racing and working with Erik Jones. As crew chief for Jones, he led the team to a pair of wins.

In 2021 he led the Joe Gibbs Racing program to 10 Xfinity Series wins with four different drivers. The following season Gayle teamed with Ty Gibbs and earned the Xfinity Series championship behind seven race wins with the No. 54 team. This season Gayle and Ty Gibbs earned eight Top 5 finishes and a dozen Top 10 finishes.

“Denny is obviously a first-ballot Hall of Famer,” said Gayle. “I’m looking forward to working with him and the guys on the No. 11 team. He and Gabehart have established an incredible culture that is a very good barometer for our other drivers and teams to strive to match. I have all the confidence in the world we can hit the ground running and continue the success that this group is accustomed to in 2025.”

Gabehart originally joined Joe Gibbs Racing in 2012 as a race engineer and switched over to crew chief in the team’s Xfinity Series program from 2016-2018. In 2019 he was promoted to crew chief of Hamlin’s No. 11 team and helped lead the team to three consecutive Championship 4 appearances. During their six season together Hamlin and Gabehart earned 11 race wins, including a pair of Daytona 500s.

“I am very thankful for the opportunities that Joe Gibbs Racing has continued to provide me for my entire tenure here and cannot say enough about how much I have enjoyed and appreciated my time with Denny and the entire 11 team,” said Gabehart.

“They have all taught me so much about not only how to race at the top of the NASCAR Cup Series, but also, how to lead a great group of talented professionals. In my next opportunity, I am as excited as I have ever been to work with all our talented drivers, crew chiefs, teams and partners to help focus all our efforts towards making 2025 one of the best seasons Joe Gibbs Racing has ever had.”