Jeff Burton

At 56 years old, Jeff Burton has this physical status:

Jeffrey Tyler Burton (born June 29, 1967), also known as "The Mayor," is an American former professional stock car racer and current racing commentator.

He has won 21 times in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, including two Coca-Cola 600s in 1999 and 2001 and the 1999 Southern 500.

He now works as a color commentator for NBC Sports, having joined them on their return to NASCAR coverage.

Harrison Burton's son currently competes in the ARCA Menards Series and part-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

Ward Burton and his nephew, Jeb Burton, have also participated in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

Personal life

Burton is Ward Burton's younger brother, who is also a former Cup Series racer. Kim, a husband and wife, have two children, Paige and Harrison. Harrison, as well as his dad, is a NASCAR racer who currently competes in the Cup Series. Burton also has another brother, Brian, who did not race in NASCAR but took over the family's building company. Burton currently lives in Huntersville, North Carolina.

Burton's ancestry can be traced back to Colonial Virginia, where his ancestor Richard Burton landed in the 1630s. He ancestry goes back to the 1200s with his ancestor Rodger de Burghton.

Burton is a fan of Bruce Lee. He rode a special Bruce Lee paint scheme on his No. 3 at the Coca-Cola 500 in Twin Ring Motegi, Japan. 99 Ford.

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Early career

Burton and his brothers were introduced to go-kart racing by his father, who then moved to late model stock cars and late models, which were driven at South Boston Speedway.

NASCAR career

Burton began racing in 1988 in the Busch Series car number 69 owned by his father John Burton. He appeared in the No. 1sty Series Rookie of the Year in 1989. 12 Burton Autosports Pontiac. In 1990, he rode the No. 1 in the United States. Sam Ard is the owner of Armour Lower Salt Bacon-sponsored Buick, where he won his first marathon appearance. Burton and Ardent later went to court for financial difficulties that had suffered through the year. He made the jump to No. 58 in J&J Racing. 99 Armour / Food Lion sponsored Chevrolet in 1991 for one year before moving to FILMAR Racing, owned by Filbert Martocci in 1992, where he would drive an Oldsmobile sponsored by TIC Financial Services, and a Ford sponsored by Baby Ruth in 1993. Burton would drive No. 1 in 1993 and make his first Winston Cup appearance in 1993. Martocci holds 0 shares.

Burton won his first Winston Cup race in 1993 in the No. 10 No. 0 TIC Financial-sponsored Ford Thunderbird for Fil Martocci.

It was Burton's first year in the Winston Cup Series, with the No. 2 leading the No. Stavola Brothers Racing is sponsored by 8 Raybestos. He finished his season with a 14th-place finish in the overall standings, but by the year's end, he had fallen to 24th after being disqualified at the Miller Genuine Draft 400 for illicit holes drilled on the roll cage, a safety hazard. On his way to be named the year's best third-place finish, he earned his fourth-place finish. He was one of a record-breaking ten rookies eligible for the award this year, leading a class that featured future Cup stars Joe Nemechek, Jeremy Mayfield, John Andretti, and Ward's older brother Ward. Burton had one Top 5 finish and a ninth-place finish last year. He also missed three races and ended 32nd in points.

Burton was signed to Roush Racing in 1996, where he began driving the No. 66 in 1996. Ford Thunderbird 99 is a Ford Thunderbird sponsored by Exide Batteries. Despite failing to qualify for the Purolator 500 in March as a new squad (provisionals in the first four races were based on 1995 points, and Burton's staff did not have points from 1995). His career soared from 1997 to 2000, with him ranked in the top five in points for both four seasons. He won his first appearance in 1997 at the Interstate Batteries 500 at Texas Motor Speedway (the first NASCAR race at the time) and went on to win 14 more races during his four-year tenure. The team upgraded to the latest Ford Taurus in 1998. Burton won a career-high six races, including the Jiffy Lube 300 for the third year in a row, and clinched two of the series's four majors, the Coca-Coll 500 and the 50th Annual Southern 500, earning him the No Bull 5 $1 million reward, which would result in a fifth-place finish in points. In addition,, after winning at Darlington in March, he will be the point champion for the next five races. In 2000, he came in third, just 294 points behind champion Bobby Labonte. Burton led every lap of the Dura Lube 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway in 2000 (this was the first Loudon race to use a restrictor plate after Adam Petty and Kenny Irwin Jr.'s deaths earlier this year). Burton won an event at NHIS every year from 1997 to 2000.

Burton and the No. 1 in late 2000 were among the first to return to the No. 1 in late. CITGO was accepted as a new sponsor by 99 people. Burton won two more races in 2001, bringing his overall total number to 17, while finishing tenth in points, up from a season low of 38th in 2004. He finished 12th in the points in 2002 and 2003, eight Top 5s and 25 Top 10s combined, but he never won a race in either year. CITGO announced that they were leaving Roush Racing at the end of the 2003 season.

Burton did not have a primary sponsor in 2004, despite the fact that his personal sponsor SKF funded races. Burton's exit from Roush Racing was among the rumors that the Burton will be leaving Roush Racing. Burton finally broke the news when it happened in mid-2004, just before the Sirius at The Glen, a three-year contract with Richard Childress Racing (RCR), leaving Roush after eight and a half years with the team.

Burton was placed in the No. 1 when he joined RCR. Chevrolet is sponsored by AOL. Johnny Sauter was the fourth pilot to pilot the car this season; the vehicle was rebranded by RCR's Busch Series program, but Dave Blaney took over the vehicle after 13 races, with Jim Inglebright making one race appearance at Sonoma. Blaney was later released when Burton first became available. Burton had an average finish of 20.8 and was 23rd in points heading into the driver change. Following his switch to different squads, the same statistics were boosted to 16.6 and 18th in the 13 races. Burton and his crew remained with RCR through the offseason, but to No. 105. Robby Gordon, 31, was the owner of a Cingular Wireless-sponsored Chevrolet, replacing Robby Gordon. Blaney was accepted in the No. 3 job. The No. 30 had been renumbered to No. 30 in the United States, which had been renumbered to the No. 07.

Burton's first full year at RCR, 2005, he had six Top 10s and three Top 5s for the year, including a third-place finish in the Subway Fresh 500 at Phoenix in April and a second-place finish in the Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Burton won the pole for four races in 2006, raising his total number of career pole victories to six. These poles were for the Daytona 500, the USG Sheetrock 400 at Chicagoland Speedway, the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and the GFS Marketplace 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Burton was extremely excited about the changes to RCR as a whole prior to qualifying for the Daytona 500. He made it possible by winning his first pole since September 2000 at Richmond. Richard Childress Racing took the front row after teammate Clint Bowyer set the second fastest time on the Allstate 400 pole. Burton's best finish came in the Chicagoland race, where he finished second in second place. He led the most laps at the Sharpie 500 in Indianapolis and Bristol, setting the pace for more than half of the distance. He won at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Dover International Speedway in the Busch Series, snapping his four-year streak in any series. Jeff qualified for the Chase for the Nextel Cup after the race at Richmond International Raceway. Burton won the Dover 400 at Dover International Speedway on October 28, 2001, snapping a 185-race winless streak dating back to October 28, 2001, allowing him to lead the points and hold it for the next three races. However, a string of disappointing results in subsequent races, including a flat tire in Talladega while running in the top five and an engine failure at Martinsville, have barred Burton from contention for the championship.

Burton won the Samsung 500 at Texas on April 15, 2007, with aide Matt Kenseth as his first driver to win multiple races at Texas Motor Speedway. He later qualified for the Chase for the Nextel Cup after finishing seventh in the 2007 standings.

Burton came close to winning the Daytona 500, the 50th in the United States. He qualified for 36th and by the time he had been running, he had worked his way up in the sport by the time the tournament ended. He led before the race's final warning, but when the green flag fell with four laps to go, he dropped several positions and ended up finishing 13th.

Burton took the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Burton defeated Harvick and Stewart for second place after a friendly visit between Kevin Harvick and Tony Stewart. Burton won the Food City 500 on Turn 2 and left Richard Childress Racing with a clean sweep of the podium. At Lowe's Motor Speedway, Burton also won the 2008 Bank of America 500. Burton took the lead from Greg Biffle with just over 70 laps to go. Burton took fuel only and held off a fight for his first multiple victories since 2001.

Caterpillar became a sponsor in 2009 and 2011. Burton had intended to participate in the championship, but Burton was forced to miss the Chase for the first time since 2005. Burton's best finish of the year was a pair of second-place finishes in Phoenix and Homestead's final two races, resulting in him finishing 17th in points.

He recovered in 2010, but he hadn't won a race, despite the fact that he did the Chase and placed second in both Dover races. Denny Hamlin was close to winning the fall Martinsville race, but Denny Hamlin was victorious thanks to a flat tire with 15 laps remaining. Jeff Gordon and his brother were in a wreck some weeks after the warning was sent. Burton walked up the track to confront Gordon, and the two players were drawn into a shoving match. Burton came in 12th in the final points standings. Burton assumed responsibility for the incident after, saying he was attempting to catch up to Gordon but was unable to see in the sun's glare.

Burton was hoping for a better season in 2011, but Burton suffered from a string of failures throughout the year. Clint Bowyer, a Richard Childress Racing teammate, gained the second Gatorade Duel. Burton's season went downhill from there after that. He was leading the Daytona 500 when his engine died halfway. He had nearly won the Coca-Cola 600 but was forced to re-invent the final process. Despite wanting another warning, the yellow flag never came out because NASCAR wanted to see the race finish under green, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. was leading the crash. Kevin Harvick, his co-worker, led Earnhardt Jr. out of gas within the first 500 yards of the race because Dale Jr. ran out of fuel. Fans were outraged when Earnhardt was expected to win and return to victory lane for the first time in three years, sparking controversies. Burton's first top ten finished in Watkins Glen International's twenty first run. Burton didn't qualify for the 2011 Chase, but he had a good run at the fall race in Talladega, leading on the last lap and out of turn four being led by Clint Bowyer. Bowyer fired from Burton's outside and won by a hood, giving Richard Childress his 100th victory as a team owner, bowing his 0.002 second defeat to Jimmie Johnson in the spring. Burton obtained the EnerSys, BB&T, and EnerSys sponsorship in 2012. Drew Blickensderfer became the crew chief after the 31 team changed crew chiefs. Blickensderfer was launching four races earlier this year, and Luke Lambert became Burton's crew chief in 2013. Shane Wilson served as the interim crew chief until 2012. Burton had six Top 10s in 2012, including a stunning second-place finish at Daytona in July after rescuing his car from spinning on the final lap. Burton will make his 1,000th race appearance in NASCAR history at Phoenix International Raceway, his sixth driver in NASCAR history to do so.

Burton will not be returning to RCR in 2014, according to Richard Childress Racing on September 4, 2013. Burton revealed on November 8 that he would work a part-time schedule in 2014. Burton later stated that he wanted to stay with RCR for 2014 to switch from racing to television, but RCR decided to sign Ryan Newman instead.

The No. 66 has been supported by Cingular Wireless in its sponsorship of the No. 31 Chevrolet in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup series prior to 2004, when NEXTEL bought the rights to NASCAR's top division. The sponsors of Ryan Newman's No. 9 are Cingular and Alltel. According to a grandfather clause, 12 Dodges were allowed to remain as sponsors. Cingular began a rebranding campaign to the AT&T Mobility brand in early 2007, following the acquisition of AT&T. NASCAR quickly agreed that a clause in their deal with Sprint Nextel would not encourage Cingular to change either the name or brand on the No. There are 31 cars in the United Kingdom.

AT&T filed a lawsuit against NASCAR on March 16, 2007, after trying and failing to convince NASCAR not to allow the addition of the AT&T globe logo to the back of the vehicle. AT&T received a preliminary injunction on May 18 and, after a failed emergency bid for a stay by NASCAR on May 19, rebranded the No. 186 on May 18. The Nextel All-Star Challenge will be held on the evening with 31 cars on board. On August 2, NASCAR was granted an appeal to be heard.

On June 17, NASCAR announced that it had filed a $100 million lawsuit against AT&T and that it would not allow AT&T and other telecommunications firms to compete in 2008; a small industry. Alltel, the other rival firm, was in the process of being sold.

A federal appeals court's decision on August 13, which allowed NASCAR to prohibit AT&T, Inc. from featuring its logo on Burton's No. 82. Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. The court also dismissed a lower court decision that barred NASCAR from stopping AT&T's activities. The appeals court remanded the appeal to the United States District Court in Atlanta.

The No. 111 at Bristol Motor Speedway in the first session of the Sharpie 500 on August 24, the No. There was no AT&T brand on the 31 cars, but there was the familiar orange and black paint scheme. Burton's pit crew wore grey Richard Childress Racing shirts, while Burton wore a plain orange fire suit featuring only small corporation sponsor logos. The vehicle came in a black hauler with only the number 31 on the side. The car would not have made it through inspection with AT&T logos, according to NASCAR officials.

Sprint Nextel and Richard Childress Racing have signed an agreement that will allow AT&T to sponsor the No. 77, which was announced on September 7, 2007. The 2008 season would see 31 cars on the road by the end of the season. Burton was expected to locate a new sponsor by 2009 under the terms of the deal. RCR had won sponsorship for the 31 of Burton's 31th birthday on June 18, 2008. Caterpillar, which had been on the No. 1 for ten years, has been on the No. Bill Davis Racing and Jeff Davis Racing, as well as Jeff's brother Ward, have signed a multi-year deal with Richard Childress Racing to become the new primary sponsor of the 31 racers, which began in 2009.

Motorsports career results

(Bold) (key) (Bold – pole position awarded by qualifying time) Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. Most laps led ** – All laps led.)

Season is still in progress. Ineligible for series points is ineligible for a series of points.

(Bold) – (Bold) – Position in pole position (Bold). (Most laps lead) – Most laps led.)

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