tom_jensen's avatar
Author:
Tom Jensen
Login For More
Rate this article:
  • 0/5 Stars
  • Related Photos
  • Related Videos
SPEEDtv.com Store
DVD: David Jefferies Story
The David Jefferies Story is a reminder of the much loved and much missed Yorkshireman.
Our Price: $24.95
Visit Button
Buy Button
Man-Made Thunder
The book examines the sport of stock car racing through the eyes and ears of the men behind the wheel and the wrenches.
Our Price: $49.00
Visit Button
Buy Button
Unisex Sandwich Cap
Unisex Velcro back hat with SPEED logo on front. PINKS logo embroidered on left and PAO logo on right. One size fits all.
Our Price: $24.95
Visit Button
Buy Button
Speedway T-shirt
Men's 6 oz. 100% Cotton Jersey Short Sleeve Tee. SPEED logo imprinted on the front center chest.
Our Price: $24.99
Visit Button
Buy Button
Ferrari Red Classic Hat
100% cotton twill. Ferrari shield embroidered on front, piping on the peak and Ferrari logo embroidered on back strap adjuster.
Our Price: $30.00 ($27.00 Member)
Visit Button
Buy Button
Footer Bg
  • Zoom More Photos Button
  • Camera Icon
CUP: Right Place, Right Time For RCR
Written by: Tom Jensen   
03/16/2008
Bristol, Tenn.
 
Jeff Burton finished the better of the two with a 13th place finish in Daytona. (Todd Warshaw/Getty Images Photo) ยป More Photos

Jeff Burton led a grand total of two laps out of 506 in Sunday’s Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway – the last two. And even though he didn’t exactly dominate the afternoon, he did lead Richard Childress Racing to its first ever sweep of the top three positions in a NASCAR Sprint Cup race, with teammates Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer finishing second and third, respectively.

So afterwards, Burton made no apologies for winning a race without having the fastest car all race long. “I won't lose sleep tonight because somebody says, ‘We have a faster car.’ All I know is we got the trophy,” said Burton. “That's what we came here to do. We did what it took to get it.”

Burton had a chance to win this race last year, when he came up half a car-length short and finished second. He easily could have moved 2007 race-winner Kyle Busch out of the way to win then, but chose not, something he reminded people of after Sunday’s victory.

“A lot of people questioned my move last year, not taking out Kyle to win the race,” said Burton. “You know, I still believe I did the right thing. That's who I am. I'm not going to change who I am. Those things come back to you. Mark Martin taught me years ago if you give, you'll get more back than you ever have to give. That's what happened. I could have had a trophy in my case last year by knocking Kyle out of the way. I chose not to do that … those things come back. They have a way of coming back. I feel like that's what happened to us today.”

For team owner Childress, it was a
huge weekend, with his team winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series race on Saturday and scoring the sweep of the top three spots in the big race on Sunday. He was properly appreciative afterwards. “You know, a lot of times just to have three cars finish Bristol is amazing,” said Childress, who is leaving Wednesday to go sheep hunting in Mongolia. “But to have them 1-2-3 … they were all three really good.”

One thing neither Burton nor Childress was willing to say was that they have surpassed Hendrick Motorsports as the top Chevrolet team in the field right now. Harvick (third), Burton (fourth) and Bowyer (ninth) are all in the top 10 in points, while the only Hendrick driver in the top 10 now is fifth-place Dale Earnhardt Jr.

“We'll talk about that in December,” said Burton. “I can assure you that the 24 (Jeff Gordon) didn't run the way today that you normally see them run here. You wake the sleeping giant, they're going to be hard to beat. There's no getting around that. We can answer that question in late November. We can't answer it today.”

“I think that's a good answer,” added Childress. “You know, I think they're a top-caliber team, top-caliber drivers. But, you know, they were strong last year, and everybody shoots at who is the best. Last year they were the best, and we had to put our sights on them.”

From here on out, though, it might be RCR who’s in everyone else’s sights.

FOOD CITY 500 RESULTS
Commenting is not allowed in this article.
View All Comments