NASCAR: Harrison Burton doing more than playing spoiler
By Mark Kristl
Harrison Burton has won back-to-back NASCAR Xfinity Series races. Will he beat the Championship 4 in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway to propel a 2021 title run?
Only a rookie in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Harrison Burton has won back-to-back races, first at Texas Motor Speedway and then at Martinsville Speedway.
He has scored four victories this season, having also won at Auto Club Speedway and then at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Can he win three straight races, simultaneously beating the four Championship 4 drivers in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway?
With his two wins in the Xfinity Series regular season, Burton qualified for the playoffs, but he was eliminated following the round of 12, the opening round.
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Had he advanced to the round of 8, he would be in the Championship 4. Since his elimination, he has shined. He scored 15 stage points along with an 11th place finish at Kansas Speedway. After that, the driver of the #20 Toyota caught fire. After finishing in 10th in the first stage at Texas Motor Speedway, he won the second stage.
After the lap 186 restart at the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) oval in Fort Worth, Texas, he was in second place, chasing down leader Noah Gragson.
With one lap left, he was still chasing Gragson, but Gragson appeared to be in line for the win. If Gragson would have won, he would have clinched a Championship 4 berth.
Instead, an enormous surprise occurred, which sent Burton to victory lane and denied Gragson his bid for the Xfinity Series championship.
WHAT A FINISH!@HBurtonRacing passes Noah Gragson to WIN at @TXMotorSpeedway! pic.twitter.com/Nhksxcw0FB
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) October 24, 2020
After winning at Texas Motor Speedway, Burton led the final 53 laps en route to winning in the first Xfinity Series race at Martinsville Speedway since 2006.
Burton, therefore, has the third most wins this season, behind only Championship 4 drivers Chase Briscoe (nine) and Austin Cindric (five).
The 20-year-old Burton will seek his third straight win and his fifth win of the season in the finale at Phoenix Raceway. With more wins than two of the four Championship 4 drivers, Justin Allgaier and Justin Haley (three each), can Burton beat them all en route to winning the Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 200?
Combined between the Xfinity Series and Truck Series, Burton has made three starts at the four-turn, 1.022-mile (1.645-kilometer) oval in Avondale, Arizona. In total, he has two top three finishes, three top seven finishes and an average finish of 4.00.
In his lone Xfinity Series start at Phoenix Raceway earlier this year, Burton started in third place. He finished in ninth and eighth in the first two stages, respectively. When the checkered flag flew, he finished in second, 3.556 seconds behind teammate Brandon Jones.
Burton should be considered the favorite to win the Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 200. Will he then use that victory — and a three-race winning streak — as a launching pad for a 2021 Xfinity Series championship run?
The #NASCAR playoffs are better when you have a driver playing spoiler. @HBurtonRacing is that guy this year, and it’s fun to watch.
— Michael Massie (@m_massie22) October 31, 2020
I’d also say he’s establishing himself as an early 2021 @XfinityRacing championship favorite.
While he has four wins, 15 top five finishes, and 21 top 10 finishes through 32 races this season, he will need to lead more laps next year. He has led 291 laps this season, a far smaller number Briscoe’s series-leading 991.
Nevertheless, Burton should also be one of the favorites for the 2021 championship. Ross Chastain and Briscoe are both moving up to the Cup Series next year, leaving a combined void of nine wins, 31 top five finishes, and 47 top 10 finishes. Burton should gain more positions, accrue more stage wins and contend for more victories next year.
Although race winners and title contenders Austin Cindric, Noah Gragson, Brandon Jones, Justin Haley and Justin Allgaier are set to return to the Xfinity Series next year as well, Burton will no longer be a rookie in 2021 like he was in 2020. Moreover, he will carry confidence into next year.
Before preparing for next year, Burton has one goal, though: win the Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 200.
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Will he win the 2020 Xfinity Series season finale? The Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 200 is scheduled to take place on Saturday, November 7, with NBC Sports Network set to broadcast the race live from Phoenix Raceway beginning at 5:00 p.m. ET.