Jeff Burton
No. 31 Caterpillar/General Mills/BB&T Chevy
Team: Richard Childress Racing
Crew Chief: Drew Blickensderfer
2011 Stats
Wins: 0
Top-5s: 2
Top-10s: 5
Poles: 0
DNF: 3
Average Start: 20.7
Average Finish: 18.3
Races Led: 9
Laps Led: 94
% Laps Completed: 98.2%
Points Finish: 20th
2011 in a Nutshell
When it’s not until the 22nd race of the year that you post your first top-10, you know your season is going to be three different kinds of ugly. Despite a late-season push which included top-10 finishes in four of the last five races, that’s how Jeff Burton’s year went in 2011. A year removed from competing in the Chase, Burton endured three engine failures, suffered through seven finishes of 25th or worse and was the only Richard Childress Racing driver not to score a victory. Like I said, ugly.
Reasons to Believe
He is a veteran driver and has the right temperament and moxie to bounce-back from a disappointing season … As evidence by having three of his four cars taste victory, Richard Childress knows a thing or two about building fast racecars … Three engine failures in one season is highly unusual for an RCR team and likely won’t happen again in 2012 … It’s borderline impossible to again be as snake-bitten as Jeff Burton was last year … He is sneaky good on the plate tracks and his smooth style plays well on the cookie-cutters … Despite being on the wrong side of 40, there’s little evidence Burton can’t get it done behind the wheel … He ended the year strong with a runner-up finish at Talladega and three top-10 finishes in the last five races … New crew chief Drew Blickensderfer is highly regarded, comes over from Roush Fenway Racing and brings with him the secrets which made Jack Roush’s Fords so quick.
Reasons to Doubt
Boyer hasn’t won a race in three seasons … Merely five top-10s in 36 races is a troublesome statistic and leads one to question whether Burton, at the age of 44, is on the downside of his career … He is a terrible qualifier … Doesn’t run up front and lead laps with the same frequency as he used to … Luke Lambert, Burton’s crew chief who he seemed to click with late last year, has been replaced … As highly regarded as Blickensderfer may be, he’s never led a team into the Chase … Optimism and determination will only carry him so far … Call it bad luck, poor timing or whatever, Burton has had a propensity to throw away potential victories.
Area of Strength: Feedback
There was a time when Jeff Burton was a Tour de Force at New Hampshire Motor Speedway or Phoenix International Raceway. Those times however have come and gone, and now the veteran’s greatest strength lays in his ability to communicate with his crew and call for adjustments during the course of a race.
Area of Weakness: Finding Victory Lane
Dale Earnhardt Jr. may get the bulk of the headlines, but Jeff Burton is currently immersed in a winless streak almost as long. The last time Burton took the checkered flag was October, 2008 at Charlotte, a span of 113 races. Now, with a greater emphasis placed on winning than ever before, the best, and to some degree the easiest, way for Burton to earn an invite to the Chase is to find his way back to the Winner’s Circle.
Best-case Scenario For 2012
The three-year winless streak gets snapped, he qualifies for the Chase with minimal effort, and like he did in 2008, makes a spirited run at winning at his first championship before falling just short.
Worst-case Scenario For 2012
A carbon copy of 2011 with the caveat that Richard Childress Racing sees the writing on the wall and the phasing out of Jeff Burton at RCR begins. Accompanied with persistent rumors Childress’s grandson, Austin Dillon, will be replacing Burton behind the wheel of the No. 31 Chevy at the end of the year
In Their Words
“I’m not here to extend my career. I’m here to win a championship.”
–Jeff Burton
Predicted Number of Wins: 0
The Racing Geek’s Final Thought
With fast cars underneath, a solid crew chief sitting on top of his pit box, and determination to atone for last year and not having won for the last three years, this is Jeff Burton’s last chance at having one more moment in the sun.
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