Burton keeps on trucking – salvages top-15 finish at Iowa

In three starts at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Jeb Burton has been tested, and the 22-year-old driver stepped up to the challenge in Friday night’s American Ethanol 200. From the drop of the green flag Burton battled an ill-handling Estes Toyota Tundra and after 200 laps, corralled the No. 13 machine to a 14th-place finish in the ninth race on the 2014 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) schedule.

From practice, to pole qualifying, and through the 200-lap NCWTS event, Burton battled handling issues that robbed him of overall speed, which proved critical in a race that featured long green flag runs. Burton was looking for security and a consistent feel in the corners throughout the day, but battled a tight Estes Toyota Tundra in the lone practice session on Friday morning.

 

After posting the 13th-quickest lap in qualifying, Burton’s Toyota jumped the fence and faced an extremely loose handling condition throughout the race. Burton, who claimed, “I’ve got my hands full”, battled different handling characteristics throughout the event, while fighting to gain track position. Crew chief Jeriod Price and the No. 13 ThorSport Racing team attempted numerous adjustments each time Burton came down pit road, and made improvements towards night’s end. Over the final 40 laps, Burton regained a handful of positions, and brought his Estes Tundra home in the 14th position. The solid effort was the Halifax, Virginia native’s second top-15 finish at Iowa Speedway and fifth top-15 finish of the 2014 season.

 

Thorsport PR