Nascar Race Today

Burton, who will make his 1,000th start Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway, looks back on the most significant starts in his NASCAR career

Jeff Burton has driven in NASCAR's national circuits for a quarter-century, and his career essentially could be sliced neatly into two halves.

In his first dozen years, the South Boston, Va., native excelled as a hands-on driver who took an active role in making suspension adjustments on his car that improved its speed.

"I was really part of the team, more than just being the driver," he said. "I actually worked on the cars. That was really fun."

BURTON: 12 QUESTIONS: Burton sits downs with USA TODAY Sports Riding out 'scary, exciting time'

In 2001-02, it changed permanently with the engineering explosion. Nearly overnight, teams went from a handful of engineers to staffs of dozens, and drivers' input on constructing setups and suspensions became limited in the age of computer simulations.

"Everyone started making major investments in engineering, which has made our sport in many ways better," Burton said. "In my case, one of my strengths was understanding the race car. Maybe I wasn't as good a driver as somebody else, but I knew more about what I was feeling. That was when I was at my best when I could really be involved."

BY THE NUMBERS: Jeff Burton's career statistics Nationwide Series, March 13, 1988

The results seem to bear out. Burton compiled 32 NASCAR victories from 1988-2001. Since then, he has 16 wins (12 in Nationwide).

"My reasoning skills helped me then," he said with a laugh. "My mathematical skills hurt me today."

Burton will make his 1,000th start Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway and faces an uncertain future with no ride announced for 2014. In an interview with USA TODAY Sports, he reflected on the most significant starts in his career:

The site: Martinsville (Va.) Speedway

Nationwide, Sept. 22, 1990

The significance: First start in a national series

The scene: Burton borrowed money to buy an engine, which failed in practice. After an overnight scramble (putting a Pontiac engine in a Chevrelet "sounds easy, but it wasn't," Burton said.), his race engine failed, too.

"It took me three years to pay that damn engine off," he said. "That was very much one day at a time."

The site: Martinsville Speedway

Sprint Cup Series, April 6, 1997

The significance: First win in a national series

The scene: Burton broke through with an underfunded team (and legendary former champion Sam Ard as crew chief) after his physician father-in-law had recommended he might consider sitting out a few races because of exhaustion.

"That was really the first time I ever thought, 'Is this worth it?' because we weren't having success, and I worked myself into being physically in trouble. The difference in how I felt when I woke up the next day after winning was unbelievable. I felt like a new person."

The site: Texas Motor Speedway

The significance: First win in premier series

The scene: Burton didn't mind the triumph was overshadowed by a 13-car wreck on the second lap of a caution-plagued race that brought howls from drivers and led to a track reconfiguration.

"I couldn't believe they could build a racetrack that was that screwed up. Of course if they'd have built Darlington at the same time they built Texas, we'd have crucified Darlington, too."

Sprint Cup Series, Aug. 31, 1997

It took 96 starts for Burton to earn his first Cup victory, which came in his second year wheeling Roush Fenway Racing's No. 99 Ford.

"That was the first year I was sitting in really good equipment," he said. "We ran really, really well, but we always found a way to not win, and then came (to Texas) under really adverse conditions and won a race. That was a big deal because we'd come so close."

Jeff Burton takes the checkered flag to win the Interstate Batteries 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, on April 6, 1997.(Photo: Jon Freilich, AP)

The site: Darlington (S.C.) Raceway

The significance: Memorable Southern 500 battle

The scene: Burton finished second to Jeff Gordon after their cars slammed on the white-flag lap. Burton's car had come to life on the final green-flag run after a slow pit stop cost him four spots with 30 laps to go. He misjudged the effect of debris on his tires when Gordon forced him low off turn 4.

"I remember it like it was yesterday," Burton said. "If I had it all to do over again, I'd have done it differently."

While team owner Jack Roush reamed Burton's pit crew afterward, NASCAR officials also were angry. "(Crew chief) Buddy Parrott got on the radio and yelled, 'Wreck that (expletive)!' NASCAR called us in the trailer because they were mad at Buddy, (team owner) Jack (Roush) was mad at Buddy. Everyone was yelling at everybody. I felt so bad for Buddy and was trying to stand up for him. That was me and Buddy against the world. It was an eventful 30 minutes."

The ruckus still hadn't subsided much when Burton attended a Charlotte Panthers game that night. "As I'm walking up to my seat, the whole two sections around me were yelling, 'You should have wrecked him!'" Burton said. "At Daytona next year, a gate guard stopped me and said, 'You should have wrecked him.' "

Sprint Cup, Aug. 22, 2004

Burton found some vindication a year later when he beat Gordon at Richmond International Racway in a clean, side-by-side battle that lasted several laps to the checkered flag.

"I was mad when it first happened with Jeff (at Darlington), but a few minutes later, I realized I would have done the same thing," Burton said. "I didn't wreck us both. At Richmond, he didn't wreck me. That's what racing should be. You're good enough to pass a guy or you're not."

Jeff Burton celebrates in victory lane after holding off Jeff Gordon to win the Cup race at Richmond International Raceway, on Sept. 12, 1998.(Photo: Greg L'Heureux, USA TODAY Sports)

The site: Michigan International Speedway

Follow Ryan on Twitter @nateryan

The significance: First start with Richard Childress Racing

The scene: An uneventful 12th-place finish might have been most memorable when Burton accidentally drove into his former Roush team's pit stall, but it still carried lots of meaning.

"There was a lot of anxiety," said Burton, who'd spent the past eight seasons with Roush Fenway Racing. "I knew I was coming into a situation that wasn't great, but I believed it would be. Michigan was Richard believing in me. I had a great relationship with Jack. Even today we do. Jack taught me. It was hard for me to leave. Michigan was the start of something. We wanted to have success right then, but I knew we wouldn't. It was starting to build the process. I don't think me and this team has had the success we hoped. We saw glimpses of it. We definitely contended for the one championship and thought we were in the catbird seat. We won some races. I'm proud of the role I played in helping build the company and getting it headed in the right direction. I don't think we accomplished all our goals, but we certainly accomplished a lot of them."