Justice gives up pigskin for chance on pit crew (cont'd)

"We heard there was this guy running around who was a hell of an athlete -- a great tire changer, tire carrier, jackman and is a tire guy who was without a job," Gaughan said. "With his athletic background, he can do just about anything over the wall. I really like a guy that has that many uses."

Justice likened the camaraderie and action in the pits to that of a football team, but the margin for error is clearly what separates the two.

"There are similarities," Justice said. "With football you have 10 other guys you depend on, and with the pit crew you have six other guys. There is a lot less room for error with a pit crew than in football. Everything is down to the millisecond in the pit stop as opposed to football where you have time to recover, time to react and make a big play."

Although one would think in a sport based on speed -- both on the track and in the pits -- Justice's track history would prove beneficial, but Justice said it's actually just the opposite.

"Track is really not a factor because the pace of the pit stop, its really more choreographing and patience," Justice said. "We always say in this business slow is fast, meaning the slower you feel the faster your stop will be as opposed to track where fast is fast."

For someone who didn't grow up around racing, Justice said he owes his career to the Drive for Diversity program where he got his start. He said "outside of ESPN" he didn't have any insight as to what NASCAR and racing were all about. But Justice has the tools and the knowledge now, and the 28-year-old looks to turn this into a very lucrative career.

"At this point I'm really not interested in driving; working for a Cup pit crew is the goal," Justice said. "Everyone that enters in the sport wants to reach that ultimate level of going to the Cup side. It's kind of like playing football -- every young man dreams of playing in the NFL so it's kind of similar. You start with trucks or ARCA or Late Model, you want to get to the top which is the Cup Series."

As one of few black men in the garage, Justice's dream of reaching the Cup level isn't the only way he will judge his success. He also wants to help bridge the gap of race in NASCAR, something he knows will be a difficult task, but rewarding at the end of the day.

"If I can help just one kid create a dream or fulfill a dream in this business, it would be very satisfying and a success," Justice said. "Being more of a mentor or a role model or something, just to help out with someone's dream, I definitely would feel successful."