Blind Trust: Inside NASCAR's Successful Driver, Spotter Relationships

NASCAR drivers have a staggering amount of things to process during a race. They have 35-plus competitors around them, the feel of their own car to constantly track, and seemingly never-ending radio chatter playing in their ears.

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And at a track such as Talladega Superspeedway, they rely even more on the spotters who must guide them through the hornets nest, keep them calm, and tell them when to make moves.

These drivers have no time to contemplate the instructions being given to them, especially at speeds over 180 mph. Any delay could lead to a missed opportunity or their involvement in a crash.

They must have absolute trust in the spotter, but how do they reach this point?

"You have to build it, build that relationship over the years," Freddie Kraft, who spots for Bubba Wallace at 23XI Racing, told FanBuzz. "I think at this point, he knows what I'm getting ready to say before I say it, and I know what he's getting ready to do before he does it.

"So we kind of already know and can anticipate that...even in the verbiage I've used. I always say the same thing, 'Half, quarter, clear.' He knows that that's kind of the same lingo, the same cadence, to where he's expecting, he's anticipating what happens before it happens."

Putting The Pieces in Place

Speaking with media members ahead of the Daytona 500, members of the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds faced a simple question - how do you build trust so strong that you can fly inches apart without making a fatal mistake?

The answer they provided is that they slowly build this faith in each other every time they take to the skies. They continue working on their formation while using visual clues from the cockpit and following the lead pilot.

Why does this matter? Some similarities exist between the Thunderbird pilots and the drivers in NASCAR, albeit at much lower speeds.

Trust is paramount. The driver needs this in their spotter to have a better chance at making it through a race unscathed.

They build trust with each other every time they head to the race track, even if they are just sitting in the hauler poring over data.

This process could take only a few days, or it could take multiple weeks or months. In some cases, it could take years to reach this level.

Chris Lambert, Denny Hamlin's spotter, had a bit of an advantage due to the era in which he joined the No. 11 team. Back in 2011, Lambert found himself in need of a new position as Red Bull Racing shut down.

He nearly joined Jeff Gordon at Hendrick Motorsports after working with Brian Vickers, but Hamlin actually came calling after listening to some Toyota radio chatter.

The two didn't know each other, but they had the opportunity to quickly get acclimated during a preseason test at Daytona International Speedway, back when NASCAR actually held these tests.

Hamlin and Lambert, as well as new crew chief Darian Grubb, discovered during these on-track sessions what worked and what didn't. This helped them make some important adjustments

"Honestly, it was fairly quick, quicker than I expected," Lambert said about building trust. "...We're sitting in the lounge (at Daytona), and he's just like staring off into outer space — we call it 'The Denny Gaze.' So I asked him, 'Everything good there? Anything I need to work on, change? Anything you didn't understand, lingo-wise, or whatever?'

"And he's like, 'No.' He said, 'Obviously, part of the reason I wanted you to come over here was your superspeedway spotting.' He said, 'When I'm able — as the driver — when I'm able to listen, process, and use it, we're going to be really, really good on superspeedways.' He said, 'Right now, you're giving me so much information that I can't process what you're saying and be able to make the moves.'"

Hamlin identified that Lambert gave him too much information in the heat of the moment, so they went to work to fine tune the discourse. They sat down and watched races together.

Lambert would pause the TV at certain points and explain to Hamlin what he would say over the radio in that particular situation and what it would mean. This way, Hamlin could connect what he saw with what he heard.

They kicked off the 2012 season by finishing fourth in the Daytona 500. They won five races in that first season and have since won three Daytona 500s and two races at Talladega.

But this trust-building continued to be an ongoing process.

(Building trust) was fairly quick," Lambert added. "I mean, now, to watch him instantly move when I start telling him, that took probably a year."

Now in their 15th season together, they have absolute trust in each other. This is fairly evident considering that Hamlin has won 44 races since 2012 at a wide variety of tracks. He has fast cars and the talent, but he also has Lambert guiding him.

"There's certain words in my delivery with certain things or trigger words that he listens for," Lambert said. "And he can tell by the amp of my voice whether it's super important or whether it's not important.

"I think the biggest thing with him is he triggers off of certain words, and he tunes a lot of stuff out until he hears certain words, and then he knows that it's pretty important to listen to the next thing that I'm getting ready to say."

The timeline from new relationship to absolute trust is certainly not the same for every driver, nor is the process of building that foundation.

Just look at Kevin Hamlin, who is in his ninth season working with Alex Bowman at Hendrick Motorsports.

When Kevin moved from Kasey Kahne to Bowman, he never sat down to go over lingo. He and Bowman had a few conversations here and there, but they didn't rewatch races or listen to radio chatter. They just started to gel.

"Alex took over the 88 and he was actually renting a house from me at that time," Kevin told FanBuzz. "I kind of knew him. I didn't know him real good. And then he was like, 'Hey, will you stay and do the 88?'

"Alex has never really said, 'Hey, you need to do this different, or this better, or this, whatever.' It's just kind of flown together. It's just worked out."

While Kevin and Bowman don't have the same level of success as Lambert and Hamlin, they have still celebrated eight wins together at some fairly difficult tracks like Dover and Martinsville.

According to NASCAR Insights, Bowman has the fifth-best average finish at Talladega (15.29) since the start of the Gen 7 era in 2022.

Kevin has still had to adjust his approach to calling races depending on the situation. It just may not be as noticeable to those tuning in over the scanner.

"When we do take the lead, I try to slow down how I talk to my drivers," he said. "Because if I'm wound up and yelling and have a fast cadence, it could get their heart rate up. And I kind of want to calm them down.

"And so we were leading at Dover (in 2021), and I think we were catching lapped traffic late, and he got a little wound up about 'Get him out of the way!' And I'm like, 'We're fine, they are not gonna catch you.' He calmed right down."

As Lambert and Kevin both noted, building trust takes time. Some spotters and drivers just have the opportunity to pursue this goal away from the spotlight.

This holds true for TJ Majors and Brad Keselowski. They have been friends for a very long time. They hung out at each other's houses over the years and built up that trust even while Majors spotted for other drivers in the Cup Series.

They had that foundation in place before Team Penske put them together. This made the mid-2021 swap from Joey Logano's radio to Keselowski's fairly seamless.

"I've been really lucky," Majors said. "I mean, obviously not everyone gets to work with some of their best friends, like Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. and Brad. I mean, me and Logano were pretty tight whenever I worked with him, too. I just think it gives you an edge."

Majors and Keselowski have years of friendship and chemistry, but they still put in extensive work. They text each other at all hours of the day - and night.

Majors also puts together video packages each week for Keselowski so that the 2012 Cup Series champion can review everything he needs. He can see areas where he struggled and areas where he made gains on other drivers. He can compare his driving to other contenders in the series.

Sure, this process takes Majors time to complete, but it also gives the duo an edge as they try to get RFK Racing back into victory lane.

This work also directly affects the radio chatter on Sunday, which is why fans will often hear Majors say, "Remember what we talked about" during various points of the race.

"I just try to put everything in Brad's fingertips, because one thing about Brad is...Brad, like Denny, is a lot busier. So it's hard to get an hour every week at this (specific) time. His week changes all the time.

"So I put everything at his disposal where he can get on his phone. Might be 1 in the morning. Might be 7 in the morning."

Keselowski and Majors only have one points-paying Cup win together — the 2024 Goodyear 400 — but they have a win in the Duels at Daytona and 61 top-10 finishes. This includes 53 top-10s since the move to RFK Racing as part of a rebuild.

Kraft, much like Majors, built this trust with his driver long before reaching the Cup Series. He has known Wallace since first spotting for him in a K&N — now ARCA — Series race at Greenville-Pickens Speedway.

Wallace was only a teenager at the time, but he showed the ability to contend for the win. This caught Kraft by surprise and led to their first heart-to-heart.

"I'm probably a little bit more ramped up than I need to be (during the race), and afterwards, he's like, 'Man, I just need you to calm down,'" Kraft said. "I was like, 'Buddy, I will be calm, I promise.' It just caught me off guard that day.

"But I think that's all it is, is just being honest with each other and what you expect out of each other communication-wise, and just bluntly telling each other."

Kraft and Wallace have stuck together since this first race at Greenville-Pickens Speedway. They have celebrated six ARCA East wins, six Truck Series wins, and three Cup Series wins.

They have continued to refine their communication, albeit in different ways than the other spotter-driver combos. They aren't going through old races as extensively as Lambert and Hamlin, nor is Wallace diving into specially-built video packages.

They still meet weekly to discuss each race on the schedule, and they will watch races separately while texting each other notes. They just don't have a specific formula they follow that requires a certain number of hours spent preparing.

"We probably would fall into the seat of our pants category," Kraft said about their preparation. "And for us, it was a lot easier because we didn't start Cup racing. We were doing it in K&N. So we probably had that rapport before we even got to the Truck Series, honestly.

"Because we did two or three years of K&N together, and then we did two or three years of the Truck, two years of Xfinity. So we were already building that up before we got to the Cup Series."

Business Partners, Brothers, Old Married Couples, and Everything in Between

With spotters and drivers spending 38 weeks a year together at the minimum, the hope is that they will get along. Their relationship will be more than a business deal focused solely on contending for wins.

That business-like approach can work in some of the lower-tier series, especially if spotters are working with a variety of drivers. But it's just different in Cup when the stakes are raised to another level.

Majors spotted for Travis Pastrana during the Truck Series race at Daytona, but that doesn't mean he is hanging out with him like he is with Keselowski.

"When I had my first daughter — that was before Brad had a wife and kids — Brad came over to my house every day," Majors said. "He would leave Penske, come to my house. He would come over and flip her upside down over his shoulder."

These relationships differ based on who you ask. Kevin is friends with Bowman. They enjoy hanging out together, and they certainly love giving each other a hard time.

But Kevin also takes on a different role during the week as he focuses on some behind-the-scenes work.

"I guess your term could be business manager for him," Kevin said. "I don't deal with any contract stuff with him. He does all that on his own.

"I'm just this catch-all guy, right? So it's manage everything that's going on at Alex Bowman Racing with just basically anything he need."

Anyone who listens to Kraft and Wallace interact knows that they are friends. But the veteran spotter views their relationship a little differently.

He views them as family. Sometimes, they are siblings. Other times, they are an old, married couple.

"I met Bubba and my wife the same year," Kraft said. "I mean, I started dating my wife and started spotting for Bubba the same year. I'm not sure which one gives me more gray hair, but it's pretty close these days (laughs).

"When we first started out racing, I was living in New York, still in K&N and stuff, so I would fly down here. I would travel to the races with Bubba and his dad. So that's how that kind of family bond came. We were having every meal together. We were traveling together, staying in the same hotels.

"Obviously, that's changed. Now, that probably changed maybe after the Truck days, I would say, but, he's like the annoying little brother that I always wanted to beat up. And I'm sure I'll be the annoying older brother that he'd like to tell to 'Shut the hell up' half the time."

Lambert and Hamlin kind of blend their worlds together. They are all about winning races and contending for championships. This is serious business, so that is how they approach it.

But their families have also spent considerable time together over the years.

"If you was to see us out, it's more business-like," Lambert said. "But obviously, I've got - they're 21 and 19 now, so not little anymore - but I've got two young boys and (Denny's) been a part of their life for 15 years, just as much as he's been a part of my life.

"So we built a relationship with them. He's come to baseball games. He's done things like that and supported those guys and some of their stuff that they've done when they were younger.

"So there's never been a time that I've reached out and said, 'Hey, are you interested in doing this? Or would you be interested in doing that,' and he's just shut me down. I've been invited to the house and basketball and the Hoop Group and that kind of stuff."

Don't Take the Radio Too Seriously

NASCAR Cup Series racing is intense, as it should be, considering everything that is at stake. One win could make for a career moment while one caution could completely derail a championship-worthy performance.

This intensity is often reflected in the way that drivers, spotters, and crew chiefs speak to each other. And nothing remains hidden in the era where fans and media members have access to every radio channel.

But here's the thing: Some chatter may sound awful, but it doesn't always accurately portray reality.

"I see what people say, and how quickly they are to judge something that is said or heard on the radio, because for whatever reason, when I say something stupid, it ends up on TV," Kevin said.

"For some reason, I don't know, maybe I say a lot of stupid things (laughs), but the fans don't understand our relationship. If we have a brief two-second moment of being pissed at each other, it's over and done. That's it. We talk every day, we see each other almost every day."

Can @Alex_Bowman and spotter Kevin Hamlin take the heat while answering some of our burning questions? You be the judge! 😎 #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/jVWg93XnG2

— Ally Racing (@allyracing) August 13, 2025

Going a step further, some spotters tell their driver to unload on them in the heat of the race, even if it's after a bad pit stop. They would rather take the brunt of the attack instead of watching the pit crew or other members of the team become demoralized.

"All the guys feed off the driver too," Majors said. "And if the driver is good to the guys...look, you want a glass half-full guy all of the time."

Kraft, much like Kevin, is no stranger to having his radio chatter circulate on social media. After all, he and Wallace have been together for 17 years.

They inevitably will say something that sounds negative in the heat of the moment. They will have minor spats.

"(Wallace) said, 'Shut the f— up,' and I said, '10-four, shutting the f— up,'" Kraft said about one particular heated moment. "And he said he spent the next two laps laughing about that.

"So those are moments like, where I kind of play psychologist half the time you're up there, especially in certain situations. And it's like, those are the moments where I know that things are getting a little heavy for him...So it's a good release for me to make a joke."

Do all of these jokes happen at the perfect time and always lighten the mood? Absolutely not.

He said during his interview with FanBuzz that he had texted Wallace "Inside" hours after a particularly rough race at Darlington Raceway.

Damage from a stage 2 incident led to Wallace falling off the pace and just riding around. He fell five laps down while Kraft said "Inside" dozens of times.

Kraft said he did not know whether this text would lead to some laughter or a smack upside the head, but he felt confident enough in his relationship with Wallace to send it.

Regardless of the reception to that particular text, Kraft has a pretty solid batting percentage over the years.

"We had a thing where at the Roval last year, (Wallace) was wanting me to remind him about his brake bias every corner," Kraft added. "So I was having to say, 'Brake bias' every corner. And then there was one we had, me and Charles (Denike, crew chief) were talking on the other channel, and I missed the one corner.

"And he's like, 'Don't get lazy up there!' And I was like, 'There's a lot going on!' So then the next race we went to (at Las Vegas), he was pissed off about something - I forget what happened - and he came off the next corner. I just said, 'Brake bias,' and he just laughed the whole way down the back straightaway.

"So it's little moments like that, that our relationship kind of shines where it's like we can give each other s—."

Bringing Along the Next Generation of Drivers

Obviously, Sunday is the most important day of the week for the spotters. The Cup Series race is the headline event, and it is up to them to guide their respective drivers through the potential carnage to a strong finish.

The Craftsman Truck Series and O'Reilly Auto Parts Series races are less significant in terms of purse and visibility. Yet they are quite important in another regard.

These races are the on-ramp to the Cup Series. The next generation of drivers competes on Fridays and Saturdays while trying to move up the ladder.

The spotters play a major role in this process as they teach these young racers and help them adapt to tracks where they may not have much experience.

They may take different approaches, but one goal is to help these drivers avoid career-defining mistakes.

"Carson (Kvapil) comes over to my house and I put him on my sim, and we go through drills," Majors said while adding that he also creates video packages for the young JR Motorsports driver. "I have repetition things I wanted to do.

"And even for (Darlington), me and Carson did some things, and he left and called me later. He's like, 'Man, that was really good today.' And then we go and run third, second, and fifth in the race, which is a pretty good race for him."

Putting drivers on the simulator is part of the learning process, as is watching film together and looking at notes or SMT data.

A driver may have a specific question about restarts at Las Vegas Motor Speedway or pit road entrance at Kansas Speedway. A veteran spotter can provide this information.

"It's just kind of just going over the last race and what to expect again," Kraft said. "What tendencies do you see? What lines do you see work better than others? Restarts - where it can be more aggressive, where is it going to be less aggressive?

"The same process just happens, probably a little more often with those guys than with - just me directly with them - versus me with the 23 team."

The focal points vary based on the drivers and level of experience, but a common theme persists - take what you can and just score a base hit.

These young drivers don't need to make an aggressive move on the final lap of the race just to go from 15th place to 14th. Sure, they could gain a point, but they could also wreck and finish last.

A good spotter can work across all three series while successfully guiding each driver, but they will also have to make some adjustments. They aren't going to say the same things to a Cup veteran that they will to a young Truck Series driver.

The way Kraft spots for Wallace will certainly not be the same as how he spots for Dean Thompson or Gio Ruggiero. The same goes for Kevin when he goes from Bowman to Sam Mayer or Tyler Ankrum.

"I give Sam more information and more coaching than I would Alex," Kevin explained. "I think Alex doesn't really get wound up on the radio, and Sam doesn't either, and Tyler Ankrum doesn't either.

"But I just give them more information than I would give Alex, because Alex will already have that grasp."

These conversations don't necessarily go away as drivers gain more experience in their respective series. Majors worked extensively with Josh Berry when the short track champion made his move to the O'Reilly Series. He has extended an offer to Pastrana to do more prep work with him if Pastrana does another Truck start.

Brandon Jones is another fitting example. He has 345 O'Reilly Series starts and seven wins, but he and Lambert still spend extensive time together in the pursuit of progress.

"I still do a lot of pre-race prep and post-race prep after the race," Lambert said. "Whether it's re-watching races and listening to audio and watching SMT or whatever.

"With Brandon, we actually go sit down physically on Tuesday mornings and spend two hours together with the crew chief, dissect the previous race, talk about the upcoming race, talk about what we've done good, what we've done bad."

The extra time with Jones reinforces what the other aforementioned drivers and spotters would say — absolute trust is not an end point in this journey. The process continues to change and evolve, even as they celebrate wins.

They can only just keep trying to get better.