>> reporter: one of briana's biggest backers has been deon williams. >> you called briana your own little to you? >> i see a lot of her in myself. not to mention she is one of the best females that i've seen change tires. so she can pull two tires like i can over the wall. and she's half my size. you know, respect is due on her end. >> reporter: the retired wake forest football player helps recruit former college athletes for nascar's drive for diversity program. >> introduce our latest. >> reporter: a training initiative aimed at getting women and people of color in race cars and on pit crews. briana is one of its top graduates. >> over 95% of all diverse pit crew over the world came from our program. over 60 individuals in the sport now currently. >> reporter: deon pulls in these athletes by explaining how lucrative these roles can be. pit crew members can make upwards of $150,000 a year. what about the critics who talk about, why are we talking about race? it should just be about the sport. >> how will the sport grow or change if we don't invite other demographics? or if we don't have