Transcript: Jeff Burton

February 15, 2001
10:58 AM EST (1558 GMT)

Jeff Burton, who scored a rare double victory by winning both the NASCAR Busch Series Grand National Divsion and NASCAR Winston Cup Series races in Phoenix last weekend, stopped by to chat with fans.

Jeff Burton at 6:00pm ET I appreciate everyone coming on and I am looking forward to some interesting questions. Let's get going!

Lori from [144.160.24.195], at 6:01pm ET Congratulations on your great weekend in Phoenix, but with 2 races left do you have enough momentum to take over 2nd place in the points standings (maybe First)?

Jeff Burton at 6:01pm ET We certainly have a chance at second, but it is highly unlikely that we could win the championship. The 18 team is very consisent and smart.

Jerry Freeman from tnt2.jasper.in.da.uu.net at 6:02pm ET What changes will you and Mark Martin make for 2001?

Jeff Burton at 6:03pm ET The 6 car is having quite a lot of changes with new people coming in to work on that team and get that program where it has always been. It hasn't been a year that we are used to seeing from Mark Martin. The 99 car has had quite a lot of success in the second half of the season and we want to continue that into next season.

Kurt Pfeiffer from [205.188.196.31], at 6:03pm ET Do you feel more comfortable and confident running Winston Cup races on weekends where you run the Busch series also? Congratulations on your Phoenix sweep.

Jeff Burton at 6:04pm ET It doesn't make a lot of difference to me. I obviously enjoy running the Busch races and I think it helps me as a driver. However there are times when I feel like it is helpful and other times where it may not be beneficial to my Cup career.

Duck from [208.208.144.31], at 6:04pm ET Great win on Sunday. Mr. Roush mentioned Buddy Parrott in victory circle. What role does Buddy have with your team now that he is no longer your crew chief?

Jeff Burton at 6:05pm ET Buddy is the general manager for the 99 and 6 cars. He has day-to-day duties that impact both programs. He brings lots of experience to the both teams and all of Jack Roush racing.

David C from Las Vegas from proxy.aol.com at 6:05pm ET Hello Jeff, Are you going to take the same car to Homestead that you just won at Phoenix?

Jeff Burton at 6:06pm ET No, we won't! We are not a team that gets into having favorite cars. We feel that all our cars should be good enough to win at each track - no favorites!

Marie Therese Mailliard from meadville-tnt-1.pa.toolcity.net at 6:06pm ET Jeff - When you and your wife are in the car together, who does the driving?

Jeff Burton at 6:07pm ET I do! Always! (laughing)

ashur from [24.29.36.65], at 6:07pm ET Since nascar is dubbed as a sport that is family based, how close are you to your brother Ward on the track as opposed to off the track?And when off, is racing a common topic of talk? thank you ashur, from new york

Jeff Burton at 6:08pm ET Racing is a topic. We try to not make it the only topic. There are things that are much more important than racing. I don't see him as much these days outside of the track, but the most important things in life are built around family.

Greg Borchers from [207.90.90.188], at 6:09pm ET Will Jeff Burton and Citco be teaming together to produce a new paint job on their car next year?

Jeff Burton at 6:09pm ET The paint scheme that we have this year is the one that we will have next year. We are happy with the paint scheme and really like the colors.

B Wilson Frankfort,Ky from [152.163.197.207], at 6:09pm ET With Mark Martin having handling problems alot this season,do you two ever exchange car setups? Your car seems to handle better than his does, so I was curious.

Jeff Burton at 6:11pm ET We exchange car set-ups a great deal. we work together as much as possible. There are times that Mark has run better than I have and the set-ups were similar and the same holds true with me running better, but Mark having the same set-up. It is puzzling to all of us that Mark is having difficulty this year, but it isn't because of his driving ability. The same thing has happened to other racers (Rusty Wallace).

Brian Hunt from [205.188.197.57], at 6:11pm ET Hi Jeff, I'm a full time Roush fan,What was the greatest win for you in your Winston Cup career besides your first ever win at Texas?

Jeff Burton at 6:12pm ET That is a tough question! Probably winning the Southern 500. The Southern 500 is one of the biggest races of the year and it is difficult to win that race because of the conditions.

Winnie from ebensburg.pcidu.com at 6:13pm ET Congratulations on your two wins this weekend. Also congratulations to you & Kim on the birth of your baby boy. Will you start Harrison racing go karts by the age of 7 like you did or will you wait until he is old enough to make that decision for himself.

Jeff Burton at 6:14pm ET We better speak to his mother about that one. I don't know how we are going to handle that one. We don't want to push him into anything he doesn't want to do, we would just want to expose him to as much as possible and let him decide on things.

joe rady from [12.30.77.58], at 6:15pm ET how do you decide what tracks you run the busch cars at the tracks you need the most work on,or the tracks you run the best at ?

Jeff Burton at 6:16pm ET We base the decision on schedule and how it fits into the Winston Cup program. Along with that it sort of depends on tracks that might help me as a driver if I raced more at them.

MICHAEL from [208.18.119.71] at 6:16pm ET You seem to always perform well when there is a potential for rain. Does your team have a unique stratagy for racing in wet weather?

Jeff Burton at 6:17pm ET I shouldn't say we have a unique strategy, but we do try and look at everything that is going on around us. Frank does a great job of looking at those things and then making a decision based on that. It isn't luck to win those races, a lot of it comes from the strategy that a team has.

Melissa from [64.9.0.146] at 6:18pm ET Congratulations on the new edition to your family! With the season coming to an end soon, do you have any specific plans for the off-season?

Jeff Burton at 6:19pm ET No specific plans. We use the off-season to get re-acquainted as a family. The Winter is a time for us to get back together. I am usually very busy, but I am home at nights, so we get more time together.

Gary Vigil from [208.229.128.117], at 6:19pm ET How difficult has it been for you adjusting to a new sponsor? Is it just a matter of different uniforms and paint schemes or more complex than that? Also why does it seem that Roush Racing is losing so many long time sponsors suddenly even when Roush drivers are competitive as ever?

Jeff Burton at 6:21pm ET It is more complex than that. I enjoy knowing the people I work with, so I can help them to sell their product that much more. It certainly is the same about winning races. The great thing is that CITGO wants to just win races and that is what we want. They have made it very easy for me and they have gone out of their way to understand me. It is exciting at the same time because they have been in Cup racing for 16 seasons.

Jeff Byrd from nas1.atm.gblx.net at 6:21pm ET How much longer do you plan to continue racing in the Busch series?

Jeff Burton at 6:22pm ET I would like to race at least next year and then look and see at how the Cup program is going. If the Winston Cup schedule continues to grow, we may have to back out. I don't want my Busch races to impact my Cup performance.

Katie from proxy.aol.com at 6:22pm ET What is your favorite thing about racing? Did you always want to be a racer??

Jeff Burton at 6:24pm ET I always wanted to be a racer. It was never a question in my mind. The thing I love the most about racing is to wake up on a morning and go to the track and know that I want to win the race. Along with that, my competition wants the same thing and those are the best things about racing.

MICHAEL from [208.18.119.71] at 6:24pm ET With new television package coming next year, we have all heard about all the new technology on the horizon. Do you anticipate NASCAR mandating any changes to the cars to accomodate this technology

Jeff Burton at 6:25pm ET I think there will obviously be additions to the car to make verything work. I don't think it will affect the performance during a race.

Mark_Barham from nwptn1.va.home.com at 6:25pm ET Do you think the Homestead winner will be overshadowed if Bobby Labonte wins the championship?

Jeff Burton at 6:26pm ET The Homestead winner will definitely have to share the spotlight, but that's all right because that's how it should be!

Racer Rivett from sk.sympatico.ca at 6:26pm ET What are your feelings and thoughts on the fact that short tracks like Myrtle Beach, Nashville and South Boston have been removed from the NASCAR Busch Grand National schedule for 2001?

Jeff Burton at 6:28pm ET It is disappointing. It is part of the growth process. I can understand why the Winston Cup teams can't run at the South Boston track. It is a shame that the Busch series can't continue there. They are certainly going to more tracks where more people can see the races, but I hate to lose the other sites.

Dan Dykstra from grapid1.mi.home.com at 6:28pm ET How much time and effort does it take to be that competive & good in both the Busch and Winston Cup Series?, and how does it effect your family life?

Jeff Burton at 6:29pm ET It takes a tremendous amount of effort from everyone involved. I am gone from home a little more because of it. I only run races that are inconjunction with Cup races. It might take me away a day earlier, but that is the only extra time it takes away.

Jeff Burton at 6:30pm ET I want to thank everyone for coming on and I hope everyone got the chance to vote today and thanks for the continued support.