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…
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