 Lambert atSonoma Raceway in 2024 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | Lucas A. Lambert 1981 or 1982 (age 43–44) |
| Alma mater | North Carolina State University |
| Occupation | Crew chief |
| Sport | |
| Country | United States |
| Sport | NASCAR Cup Series |
| Team | 77.Spire Motorsports |
Lucas A. Lambert (born 1981/2) is an AmericanNASCAR crew chief who works forSpire Motorsports as the crew chief of their No. 77Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in theNASCAR Cup Series driven byCarson Hocevar.
Lambert was previously Cup Series crew chief forRichard Childress Racing,Roush Fenway Racing (now RFK Racing) andLegacy Motor Club. He first worked onJeff Burton's No. 31 RCR car in the Cup Series as an engineer and a crew chief, then became the crew chief for their No. 2 car in the Nationwide (now Xfinity) Series driven byElliott Sadler, followed by a second stint as a Cup Series crew chief on the No. 31 (later renumbered as the No. 8) car, driven by Burton,Ryan Newman, andDaniel Hemric. He then moved to Roush as the crew chief for their No. 17 car, driven byChris Buescher, and later the team's No. 6 car where he reunited with Newman, and then to JRM as the crew chief for Gragson and their No. 9 car, and continued with Gragson when he moved up to the Cup Series full-time in 2023 driving for LMC, staying as the crew chief through the rest of the year with other drivers, including Hocevar, after Gragson's suspension and departure from the team.
Lambert became a NASCAR fan as a child after attending races atBristol Motor Speedway which led him to start racinggo-karts. He attended college atNorth Carolina State University and participated in the university's Wolfpack Motorsports program as a driver and mechanic.[1]
After graduating college in 2005, Lambert worked forRichard Childress Racing as a mechanical engineer; he was moved up to race engineer in 2007 to work withJeff Burton's team. When Burton's crew chief,Todd Berrier, was fired midway through the 2011 season, RCR tapped Lambert to take over crew chiefing duties of the No. 31.[2] Lambert moved to RCR'sNationwide Series No. 2 car to beElliott Sadler's crew chief in 2012. The duo won four races and finished second in the standings. As a result of that successful season, he was moved back up to the Cup Series to Burton's No. 31 car again in 2013.[3] While Burton left the team at the end of 2013, Lambert stayed on with new driverRyan Newman in 2014.[4] In his first season with Newman, Lambert guided the team to the Championship 4 in the first season of the new knockout-style playoff format.[5] In 2015, Lambert was suspended six races for illegal tire modifications inthe race atAuto Club Speedway.[6] Lambert earned his first Cup win atop the box with Newman atPhoenix Raceway in 2017.[7] When Newman left forRoush Fenway Racing in 2019 to drive the team's No. 6 car, he was replaced in the renumbered No. 8 car byDaniel Hemric, and Lambert remained the crew chief of the car.[8]
In 2020, Lambert left RCR to move toRoush Fenway Racing to be the crew chief for their No. 17 car, driven byChris Buescher.[9] On October 3, 2021, RFR announced that Lambert and their other crew chief, Scott Graves, would be switching teams beginning atthe race at theCharlotte Roval, and Lambert reunited with Ryan Newman and became the crew chief of the No. 6, while Graves moved to Buescher's No. 17.[10]
On January 4, 2022, it was announced that Lambert would be the new crew chief forNoah Gragson and theJR Motorsports No. 9 car in the Xfinity Series after Gragson's previous crew chief, Dave Elenz, moved up to the Cup Series to crew chiefErik Jones and the No. 43 car forRichard Petty Motorsports, which would soon after becomePetty GMS Motorsports.[11]
On October 25, 2022, it was announced that Lambert would move back to the Cup Series in 2023 and would continue to crew chiefNoah Gragson. The two of them would joinPetty GMS Motorsports on the team's No. 42 car.[12] After it was announced that Lambert and Gragson would be joining the team in 2023,Jimmie Johnson became a part-owner of the team and it was renamed Legacy Motor Club. In June, Gragson got injured in a crash in the race atGateway andGMS Racing Truck Series driverGrant Enfinger filled in for him at Sonoma. When Gragson would be indefinitely suspended in August and left the team soon after, Lambert worked withJosh Berry,Mike Rockenfeller,Carson Hocevar andJohn Hunter Nemechek who finished the season in the No. 42 car.
On November 13, 2023, Lambert left his job at the Legacy Motor Club No. 42 car the team announced that he would be replaced byBen Beshore in 2024.John Hunter Nemechek became the new full-time driver of the No. 42 and Beshore was his crew chief in the Xfinity Series withJoe Gibbs Racing in 2023.[13] On December 6, it was announced that Lambert would crew chief forSpire Motorsports on their No. 77 car in the Cup Series in 2024, which would be driven full-time byCarson Hocevar, who Lambert crew chiefed at LMC at the end of the 2023 season.[14]
Lambert is a native ofMount Airy, North Carolina and graduated fromMount Airy High School in 2001. He graduated fromNorth Carolina State University in 2005 with a degree in mechanical engineering.[1]