NASCAR Icon Claims Diversity Will Make Drivers Lose Their Job: “It’s Very Few That Can Take Their Ego”

NASCAR’s 75th season has seen the organization make an indelible mark in the motorsports world. With its focus on diversity and outreach, NASCAR made history after its debut at the Le Mans 24 Hours race. Garnering the much-desired attention and success, NASCAR then debuted its first-ever street circuit in Chicago. While NASCAR’s street racing venture was a massive success, Trackhouse Racing’s Project 91 stole the limelight. 

Driving the #91 Trackhouse Racing Chevy, NASCAR debutant and three-time Australian Supercars championship winner, Shane van Gisbergen went on to win the Grant Park 220 event in spectacular fashion. In light of these events, NASCAR icon and two-time Coca-Cola 600 champion, Jeff Burton claimed stock car professionals could lose their jobs.

Jeff Burton is apprehensive of NASCAR’s diversity drive

Trackhouse Racing’s Project 91 outfit paired with the racing prowess of Shane van Gisbergen turned into the perfect recipe for domination at NASCAR’s inaugural street circuit. Adept at racing on street circuits, the Kiwi’s Supercars championship-winning talent was at full display on the Chicago Street Course. Commanding praise from veteran NASCAR drivers, van Gisbergen’s stellar Chicago feat broadened NASCAR’s reach. With Project 91 outfit further expanding on NASCAR diversity bid, not all speculations that come out were positive. 

One such speculation came from former NASCAR driver, Jeff Burton, who opined that diversity may cause NASCAR’s drivers to end up losing their jobs. This speculation stemmed from the attention generated by van Gisbergen’s debut win, hinting at the possibility of foreign drivers filling the seats in NASCAR. Speaking on the NASCAR on NBC podcast, Jeff Burton said, “I think with Shane (van Gisbergen) having the success he did, there’s a lot of them that went, ‘Hey, I can do that, I’m racing with Shane, I can race with him!’ And now I think it has even more people interested, which is a fascinating concept.

“I think that in the past, drivers were probably a little more reluctant because you really didn’t see people having success; and now Shane comes in here and wins. I’m sure that changes the mindset of drivers that can, ‘Hey if I get a good equipment, I got a shot.’ That will create more interest as well,” Burton added.

Revealing how more seats could be filled up by the outsiders, Burton said, “Look, great race car drivers don’t wanna go somewhere and not run well. It’s very few that can take their ego, and say, ‘You know what, I know I’m gonna go and I’m gonna do this. I’m not gonna run well, but it’s ok.’ It’s very few who can do that. But if those guys think they can come and compete at a high level, that will generate even more interest to be here.”

Watch This Story: How Shane Van Gisbergen’s Chicago Victory Became An Embarrassing Nightmare For Cup Drivers?

With Jeff Burton’s comments raising concerns regarding the future of stock car drivers in NASCAR, let’s take a look at how the Trackhouse Racing team expanded on NASCAR’s diversity drive.

The “landing project,” that is, Project 91  

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Fielding two full-time entries in the Cup Series with Ross Chastain and Daniel Suarez behind the wheels of its #1 and #99 cars respectively, the Trackhouse Racing team also fields the part-time #91 Cup Series car. What’s unique about the #91 is, unlike other teams who either field their team owners or other NASCAR drivers part-time, Trackhouse Racing has chosen a Finnish talent. 

Attracting the world’s best drivers and headed by the legendary crew chief Darian Grubb, the open-entrant team had earlier fielded the 2007 F1 world champion, Kimi Räikkönen. Speaking on The Dale Jr Download podcast, team co-owner Justin Marks explained the idea behind Project 91 saying, “NASCAR is this quintessential American thing, on these ovals, doesn’t exist anywhere else. So that moves the needle for people like, Daniel Ricciardo and some of these guys like they want to come do this thing.

They want to try it but with the old cars, this was too difficult. So, Project 91 is about building a division in the company that is set up to be the landing spot in NASCAR, for people of that stature that want to come try it.” 

Read More: “They Wanna Come In and Disrupt Things”: Dale Earnhardt Jr Reveals the Justin Marks-Effect on NASCAR as Project 91 Turns Out to Be a Massive Success