Burton Riding Wave of Momentum into Iowa

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer

Several NASCAR Camping World Truck Series drivers, including Harrison Burton, are entering Iowa Speedway with some added momentum. In the M&M’s 200, Burton will drive the No. 51 Morton Buildings Toyota Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports.

Burton is coming off of a win in the ARCA Racing Series at Pocono Raceway and a top-five finish in the Money in the Bank 150 Super Late Model race at Berlin Raceway. The two races are just an example of the kinds of cars that Burton has competed in this season, including the Truck Series, NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, ARCA, Super Late Models, among others.

“I think anytime you can get in a race car is a positive, Burton said. “Every lap you turn you have an opportunity to learn something and gain experience in any vehicle. If it has four wheels, gas and brake pedals then you are going to learn from it. You can race against the best drivers in each series and learn from them, whether it’s Kyle Busch or the track champion at the Super Late Model races. They are all hard to beat and you learn from them and try to get better.”

In five previous starts at Iowa Speedway, Burton has two top-five finishes, one in ARCA competition and one in K&N Pro East competition. His best finish, a third-place, came in his ARCA debut. Burton has never finished outside the top-15 at the 0.875-mile oval.

The 17-year-old now has more time on his hands as the summer break has started. So far in 2018, Burton has competed in just under 20 races across multiple series. Although, he still cannot compete in the Truck Series at tracks longer than 1.1-miles in length.

“It’s made my life a whole lot easier for sure,” Burton explained. “I don’t have to worry about doing homework on my way to the race track, or while I’m at the race track. I can focus on racing and prepare more ahead of time. I can watch race film instead of doing homework at night. I can start applying myself more in the gym and in the shop. It’s big relief to not worry about being at school every day and instead focus on racing full time, which is awesome.”

Iowa also marks the 10^th start in Burton’s early career in the Truck Series. To date, he has earned two top-five and three top-10 finishes.

Now Burton and his KBM team will look to continue to ride his wave of momentum.