Hendrick Motorsports has formally stepped into the discovery dispute surrounding the ongoing legal battle involving Joe Gibbs Racing and Spire Motorsports.
Hendrick, which is not a party to the lawsuit, filed a response in federal court Friday, Sept. 25, seeking to protect its interests as JGR pursues additional documents and technical testimony from Spire through discovery.
Hendrick’s concern is specific. The organization argues JGR’s discovery efforts could reach proprietary Hendrick information, including material HMS says represents decades of trade secrets, highly confidential technical information and intellectual property.
“Hendrick Motorsports does not want to be involved in this lawsuit, but it cannot sit idly by while Joe Gibbs Racing seeks (whether directly or indirectly) the exact types of information belonging to Hendrick Motorsports that Joe Gibbs Racing claims are its most confidential and proprietary trade secrets,” Hendrick stated in its filing.
NASCAR reporter Matt Weaver highlighted the filing Friday.
Hendrick’s filing adds another significant layer to a discovery fight that had centered on JGR and Spire. Now, one of NASCAR’s most prominent organizations is asking the court to ensure its own proprietary information is protected as that process moves forward.
Hendrick Motorsports Says It ‘Cannot Sit Idly By’
The filing comes in response to JGR’s motion to compel the production of documents and for leave to depose technical witnesses.
Hendrick identifies itself as a non-party and says it is appearing solely to protect its interests to the extent JGR’s motion seeks documents beyond those sought in its original motion that reveal or are derived from Hendrick information.
The organization describes that information in the filing as its “42 years of proprietary trade secrets, highly confidential technical information, and intellectual property.”
That distinction is critical.
Hendrick has not joined the underlying lawsuit, and its filing should not be interpreted as the organization taking a position on every aspect of the dispute between JGR and Spire. HMS is addressing a narrower issue: the potential disclosure of information it considers confidential and proprietary.
Hendrick asks the court to deny JGR’s motion to compel and for leave to depose technical witnesses in its entirety.
The organization also lays out what it wants to happen if the court does not completely deny JGR’s motion.
If Spire is ordered to produce any of Hendrick’s highly confidential and proprietary information, HMS asks the court to give it the right to seek a protective order within 14 days of receiving a “reasonably specific description of the information requested.” Hendrick also asks for an opportunity to inspect the information to be produced, if necessary.
In other words, Hendrick wants the opportunity to protect its information before that material is disclosed through the discovery process.
JGR-Spire Discovery Fight Now Reaches Hendrick
Perhaps the most notable part of Hendrick’s response is how the organization frames JGR’s request.
Hendrick argues JGR is seeking, directly or indirectly, the same types of information belonging to HMS that JGR itself has characterized as among its most confidential and proprietary trade secrets.
That is Hendrick’s position before the court, not a determination that the court has made. But it explains why HMS believes it has an interest in a discovery fight stemming from a lawsuit to which it is not a party.
The connection to Spire is also important.
Hendrick and Spire have an established technical relationship. Spire announced an expanded technical alliance with Hendrick Motorsports ahead of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season that included engineering and technical support.
Against that backdrop, Hendrick is seeking safeguards against the disclosure of information it says belongs to HMS as JGR pursues technical material from Spire.
The filing does not mean Hendrick has joined Spire as a defendant or otherwise become a party to the underlying case. Nor does it necessarily put Hendrick on Spire’s side regarding the merits of the broader litigation.
Instead, Hendrick is protecting its own interests in a specific discovery dispute.
That distinction also makes the organization’s blunt language particularly notable. Hendrick says it does not want to be involved in the lawsuit at all. But it also says it will not “sit idly by” if the discovery process could encompass the same categories of proprietary information it has spent decades developing and protecting.
With Friday’s filing, the JGR-Spire legal battle has now prompted one of NASCAR’s most prominent organizations to formally protect its interests in court.
Hendrick Motorsports Steps Into Joe Gibbs Racing-Spire Legal Battle