Gimbert began racing in his teens, finishing second in the French Yamaha TZR125 Championship in 1993. He developed steadily through the domestic 125cc and 250cc ranks, winning the French 250cc Championship in both 1996 and 1997 on a Honda RS250R. These back-to-back national titles led to an attempt at the 500cc World Championship, where he raced a privately entered Honda NSR500V from 1998 through 2000 without achieving front-running results, finishing as low as 30th overall. He also contested the 250cc World Championship in 2000 but again found it difficult to compete at the front with limited resources.
Gimbert found his true calling in long-distance endurance racing from 2002 onward. In that year he claimed victory at the Le Mans 24 Hours and the Bol d'Or aboard a Suzuki GSX-R1000. In 2003 he added wins at the 24 Hours of Spa and the Bol d'Or, and finished second at Le Mans. These results established him as a dominant force in the discipline.
The 2004 season brought the pinnacle of his endurance career. Racing a Yamaha YZF-R1, Gimbert helped his team claim the FIM Endurance World Championship title. The achievement confirmed his status as one of the most complete endurance racers in motorcycle racing.
Strong performances in 2004 — including a pair of fourth-place finishes at Magny-Cours despite slow starts, at a time when factory-backed entries were scarce — earned Gimbert a contract with Yamaha Motor France as their second rider in the Superbike World Championship for 2005. Competing on the YZF-R1, he finished 16th overall that year, followed by 19th in 2006 without a top-10 finish. He contested three Superbike World Championship races in 2008, again on a Yamaha.
For the 2007 season Gimbert moved to the Supersport World Championship, finishing 20th overall on a YZF-R6. That same year he continued to compete in endurance events, winning the Bol d'Or for the fourth time in his career.
Alongside his international campaigns, Gimbert remained a consistent contender in French domestic competition. He finished second in the French Super Production series in 2003 and contested further rounds in 2004. His most sustained French Superbike success came in the 2009, 2011, and later seasons: he won the French Superbike Championship in 2009 on a Yamaha YZF-R1, and again in 2011 on a BMW S1000RR. He was a runner-up in 2010, 2012, and 2014, demonstrating extraordinary longevity in the domestic series.
From 2010 onward Gimbert split his time between French Superbike competition and the FIM Endurance World Championship. He transitioned to BMW S1000RR machinery for several seasons before moving to Honda CBR1000RR in 2014. He achieved a second-place finish in the Endurance World Championship in both 2011 and 2012 on the BMW. He continued competing in endurance events through at least 2016 with the Honda.
Gimbert's career is a study in versatility across multiple championships and machinery. Beginning as a national 250cc champion, he adapted to the demands of 24-hour endurance racing to become one of the most decorated riders in events such as the Le Mans 24 Hours, the Bol d'Or, and the 24 Hours of Spa. His 2004 FIM Endurance World Championship title remains the highlight of a career that spanned more than two decades of professional competition.