With the Kansas race all done and dusted, all eyes are on the most exciting race of the season: the throwback Darlington race. The honorary starter for the race is none other than Jeff Burton. Ahead of the event, the two aces of their time, Richard Petty and Burton sat down to speak about the Darlington race. This was when Burton snubbed the Dayton 500.

Jeff Burton will always choose Darlington Raceway over Daytona 500

In the recent sit-down talk with Richard Petty ahead of the race—Burton expressed how he would always choose Darlington over Daytona. Now this may come as surprising! Because Daytona holds a special place for drivers and not just because it is a season opener but also because the track here draws millions of viewers. Winning the Daytona 500 is almost like a career-defining moment for NASCAR racers. Richard Petty himself won seven times on this very track. 

But Burton believes otherwise. “Daytona 500, and it is our biggest race but if I never won a Daytona 500 and if you came to me and said I’ll give you a Daytona 500 for one of your Darlington wins I’m not taking it I’m keeping my Darlington wins.”

While this may raise eyebrows, he has an apt reason! Burton believes that the “challenge” of the Darlington track is what makes it great. It is not essentially just for the drivers but also for fans. He believes Darlington is the only track where a driver’s challenge is visible to the fans. 

He said, “To me, what makes Darlington so great for drivers and fans is that it’s really hard. It’s a difficult racetrack, and you can see it. You can see the drivers ride against the wall. You can see them having to change lanes. It’s always changing. When it’s changing as a driver, you’re having to make those adjustments, but the fans can see the driver making those adjustments. I think that track, more than anywhere else, shows how hard it is to drive a race car.”

But this sentiment was not just limited to him. 

Richard Petty echoes Burton’s sentiment and claims Darlington’s track is a tough one

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Richard Petty is a seven-time champion–a legend of NASCAR and even he agreed that the Darlington track was a tough one. He mentioned that while almost everyone would want to win the Daytona race, Darlington would be a close second. 

Richard Petty has won three times on the track and hence his statements are worth the weight. He said, “Just because it’s such a tough race track. I ran down there for years and years, I finally won three races in two years, and then none before that and then after it. But I always liked Darlington. It suited the way I drove, I just didn’t have a lot of good luck there. But again, it was so demanding, not just on the driver, but it was demanding on the car. The grooves changed as the cars changed, so they run a completely different groove and stuff now, than what we used to run, just because of the way the cars are. So people had to learn the race track, but then they got to learn the cars, to fit that race track.”

But why is this track tough? The name itself gives it away!

Darlington track is also referred to as “too tough to tame.” It truly lives up to its reputation with its unique features. The egg-shaped layout of the track has contrasting challenges, which makes it difficult to race. One side features flat wide and sweeping turns and the other has narrow curves and is oval. The track too is abrasive and adds another layer of difficulty for drivers demanding more balance and precision from them.

With the iconic race coming up, we can only wait and watch who takes the cake this time on this very challenging track! Do you have a name in mind? Let us know in the comments.