Did Jeff Burton ever win the Daytona 500? All you need to know
Former NASCAR driver Jeff Burton raced in the Cup Series from 1993 to 2014 and earned 21 race wins in the series but never won the Daytona 500. He won two Coca-Cola 600s and one Southern 500.
The 57-year-old drove for several teams over 22 years, including Roush Racing and Richard Childress Racing. After retiring from racing, he became a commentator for NBC Sports. His son Harrison and nephew Jeb also race in NASCAR.
Burton had four top-5 finishes at the Daytona 500. His best finish at the 500-mile race at Daytona International Speedway was second in 2000. He also came very close to winning the race in 2008. During the 50th Daytona 500, Burton started in 36th place but worked his way up through the field and took the lead on lap 195. However, Ryan Newman won the race and Burton finished 13th.
A caution came out after Casey Mears crashed into the wall. Burton had a fuel problem after the race restarted, which allowed Stewart and other drivers to pass him.
"Hard to get over it" - Jeff Burton on not winning a NASCAR championship
Jeff Burton was also unable to win a NASCAR Cup Series championship during his career.
He started racing in the Xfinity Series with his father's car in 1988. He moved through different teams in the 1990s, including J&J Racing, FILMAR Racing, and made his first Cup start in 1993. Burton won the NASCAR Rookie of the Year award in the following year.
He raced in Roush Racing's No. 99 for about eight years and had his best season in 1999 when he won six races and finished 5th overall. He finished in the top four in the standings from 1997 to 2000. Burton was often overshadowed by his teammate Mark Martin.
“I can tell you from a guy that didn’t win a championship, it’s damn hard to get over it. Even at my age now, it still bothers me that I never won a championship,” Jeff Burton said (via NBC Sports).
Burton moved to Richard Childress Racing (RCR) in 2004 and competed for the team's No. 31 Chevy for nine years. His performances declined in 2013 and he left RCR to race part-time in 2014. Burton earned 27 Xfinity and 21 Cup Series wins over his racing career.
His son, Harrison Burton, won his first Cup Series race at Daytona, this year in August. Harrison beat Kyle Busch by 0.047 seconds at the Coke Zero Sugar 400 with Jeff in the booth.