It was something every NASCAR driver’s father dreamed of for their child: a win at Daytona International Speedway.
Harrison Burton, son of NBC Sports analyst Jeff Burton, won his first NASCAR Cup Series race at the 2.5-mile track in August. A winner of the summer Daytona race himself, Jeff Burton stepped out of the booth and celebrated the special victory with his son.
Burton first joined NBC in 2015 after competing in Cup for about 20 years. Having amassed 21 series wins, he started announcing with Rick Allen and Steve Letarte when NBC began its portion of the NASCAR broadcast that year.
Frontstretch recently caught up with Burton to chat about Leigh Diffey joining the NBC booth, his family’s legacy leaving a positive light, what he wishes he’d done in his driving career, podcasting and more.
Trenton Worsham, Frontstretch: During the non-NBC portions of the schedule, what can you tell the fans about what you enjoy doing and have been doing before your part of the season begins?
Burton: I go to most races in person. I will generally sit in the stands. I’ll take my headset, and I’ll listen to different drivers on the scanner, flipping back and forth and just kind of watching the races as a fan. There are times when I’ll go inside and watch it, but mostly I’ll sit in the stands or stand on the roof. So that’s how I prepare. I’ve found that to be the most useful.
Worsham: Leigh Diffey coming into the NBC booth has a brought an infectious energy. Working with him, outside of what we see, what has he brought to the team? What can you say about him professionally as well as personally?
Burton: He’s been doing motorsports around the world for years and years, so he understands motorsports 100%. He’s lived in America for a long time, so he knows NASCAR, and this is clearly the most he’s covered it. He loves racing. He’s a race fan, and he gets into it and he enjoys it.
Much like the rest of us, we do it because it’s fun — we like to do it. We’re racing fans. It’s not just a job. There’s fandom, there’s excitement, there’s enthusiasm. We’ve been in the sport for forever, and we love it.
So he falls right in there with that. His quest and care to continue to know more about NASCAR is super high. He spends a lot of time talking and meeting and having conversations with people. He’s a real professional. He cares about it, and he has a genuine love of motorsports. He’s great to work with, he’s fun to work with and he’s a true professional and motorsports enthusiast.
Worsham: Have you seen and observed things as a commentator you missed as a driver?
Burton: Oh god, yes. So Steve Letarte and I had a similar experience with, we didn’t know what happened on the other side of the fence. You are so focused on your profession and delivering on track that you know what happens in your hauler and know what happens in your pits and your garage area, but you don’t have a lot of understanding of what happens everywhere else.
My first few races on the other side of the fence, I was shocked at all the things that were going on, all it took to put a race on, all it took to put a broadcast on. There’s just a lot more happening than I ever recognized.
Now, I knew people were selling tickets, I knew broadcasts were there and I knew there were concessions, but I never paid attention to ‘how,’ right? I just knew it was there.
Once you get on this side, then you start seeing how more cakes are made. I knew how the cake is made with a race team, but I didn’t know how a cake was made for a racetrack, broadcasts or hospitality events. So just a completely different experience.
Also, I’ve said this to Steve multiple times, but I wish I would’ve taken more time during an Xfinity race to go watch it from above, go see it the way I see it now. I think I would’ve been a better racecar driver had I looked at and listened to what teams are dealing with and how they were dealing with it.
There’s a lot to learn from watching what other people do, and I wish I would’ve done that more. Because now that I watch from above, I have a different perspective, just in regard to how you’re successful, what are the things you can’t do and how do you try to overcome them. I wish I would’ve spent more time doing that, because it would’ve certainly helped me.
Worsham: Do you think you would’ve used a media platform such as podcasting to voice opinions had you had the option during your career?
Burton: That’s a good question. I had a great relationship with the industry and NASCAR media. I enjoyed being more than just a driver and being involved and knowing what was going on and helping to be an influence. For whatever reason, some people don’t care for it, but I do.
I think I could’ve been an extension of that. I could’ve used that to enhance my enthusiasm about safety and better racing and all the things I like to be involved in.
I probably could’ve used that in a way that could’ve been productive. It could’ve been fun, but I don’t know, it’s hard to look back on something and say, ‘I would’ve,’ because I don’t know.
Some people just wanted me to be a racecar driver and not worry about that stuff. There may have been some resistance, but I think there’s only so much I can consume, to be honest with you. I can’t just sit down and listen to podcast after podcast, but I do enjoy the different opinions and how they can reach more people. I think thought-provoking content is good for our sport.
Denny [Hamlin] is on his podcast, and he’s giving opinions from a Hall of Fame driver as well as an owner. I think that’s really cool content, and even if I don’t agree on something he says, that’s not the point. The point is we could all look at this sport a little differently.
We all have different experiences in this sport, and I think sharing those experiences with our fan base is a real positive thing. I heard hardcore fans like the details. Having people like [Dale Earnhardt] Junior, [Kevin] Harvick and some of our media members, you get all of these different perspectives of what is the sport, where is the sport and how is the sport, and I think that’s cool. I think it makes people think, it makes them consider something different, and I think that’s good for us.
Worsham: Harrison [Burton] won over the industry, drivers and fans by winning at Daytona. Part of that is the legacy both you and your brother Ward [Burton] created. So what does that mean to have a positive view of your family’s name and legacy that you both left?
Burton: I don’t want to speak for anyone else, but I think for me, I know how much it takes to be involved in this sport and to be successful in this sport. This sport has been very good to all of us, but it’s also broken our hearts, and it’s a very difficult way to make a living. At the same time, it’s a massive honor to make a living doing it. It’s a privilege, it’s not a right, a gift to be able to do what you love to do as a profession.
If you look at the number of people that have started races versus the people who have won them, it’s a small percentage to ever win a Cup [Series] race, which makes it really great to be a part of, but also makes it difficult. It’s a love-hate relationship, and because of all of that, our family is tough. We have dealt with a lot of adversity, and we don’t quit and we keep bringing effort. We are fighters, and I take a lot of pride in the fact that our stories aren’t just of success.
Being proud of the NASCAR fraternity is an honor, but I can’t say I’ve loved every moment of it, because I haven’t. There’s been a lot of stuff that I didn’t love that was really hard, but it’s helped shaped who I am. If you don’t like me, that’s fine, and if you do, that’s fine too. But [NASCAR] has been a massive influence on my life and how I treat people, how I look at life and how I look at the world, and I think overall it’s been very positive.
Our legacy is important because all of that matters. Part of who we are is because we’ve been involved in this sport through the good and the bad. I think we have a good reputation in this sport because of how we treat people, and we’ve always tried to do the right thing.
I’m proud of the races we’ve won, and I’m proud of the fight we’ve put out and how we’ve conducted ourselves. That’s how I see it. There’s more to go. There’s more to do. We’re not done. Jeb’s [Burton] still racing. Harrison’s still racing. I’m still in the sport, and I know Harrison and Jeb are committed and dedicated just like Ward and I were.Â
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Both my wife and I cannot stand Leigh Diffey , we mute the race and unfortunately miss Steve and Bob’s input. NBC please replace him so we can listen to the race again!!