To say Harrison Burton’s tenure in the NASCAR Cup Series has been rough would be a massive understatement.
Five top-10 finishes and a best points finish of 27th were all Burton had to show for his Cup Series career through his first 97 starts, but that all changed on Saturday at Daytona.
Burton lined up second for the race’s final restart, and with two-time Cup Series champion Kyle Busch to his inside, he had a tall task in front of him if he wanted to break through for his first Cup Series win.
Hollywood couldn’t have scripted it any better: With a push from Parker Retzlaff on the final lap, Burton charged in front of Busch and held on to claim his first Cup Series victory.
It’s poetic that Burton’s Cup Series career began with a flip at Daytona in 2022, and now, the first chapter of it will end with a victory at the same track. Of course, there are still 11 races — including a potential playoff run — remaining for Burton, but with Josh Berry already confirmed to be driving the No. 21 car in 2025, Burton is still on the hunt for a new ride.
One win at a superspeedway doesn’t take away from a lack of overall results, but it does prove that Burton does have an asset that’s critical in modern-day NASCAR: being able to win under pressure when the chips are down.
Burton’s victory now gives him a chance to make a Cinderella championship run, but it also marks the 100th win for the storied Wood Brothers. Most importantly, perhaps, it guarantees a payout of at least $3M for the team over the next three years, allowing the team’s executives to relax slightly about the team’s financial situation.
Burton may have nearly run out of time with the Wood Brothers, but at just 23 years old, there’s plenty of time for Burton to regroup and begin a new chapter of his NASCAR career.
With his win on Saturday night, it just became a lot more likely that the plot of that new chapter will take place in the Cup Series, where it seems — at the moment, at least — the second-generation driver belongs.
