Ward Burton says he misses everything about being a race car driver. Credit: Autostock

Upon reflection, Burton wants back in the game

Year off leads veteran driver to believe he had role in exile

SOUTH BOSTON, Va. --- Ward Burton, never one to sugarcoat things, is quite matter-of-fact when reasoning his yearlong absence from NASCAR competition:

The phone didn't just sit idle. He had opportunities to get back in the seat. Just couldn't get excited about any of them. So he held out.

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He was a Nextel Cup Series driver, damnit. Anything less was unacceptable.

But as one of the most active Silly Seasons in recent memory came and went without resolution, Burton began to realize something: Some of this is my fault. It's not just going to fall in my lap.

"There were a few offers," Burton said. "It wasn't as good as I'd have liked, and some of that is my fault, not being as proactive as I needed to be and relying on other people to do things for me.

"I didn't take time within the racing fraternity as I should have."

That's not to say it was time wasted. Quite the contrary, in fact. Burton spent the year working on land conservation projects and spending considerable QT with his wife and children.

"I needed a little bit of a breather to collect my thoughts and get my direction in my life the way I want it to go," Burton said. "So I think having a year to spend time with things I'm passionate about has been really good for me."

Figuratively speaking, he hit the reset button.

"The loss of that year made me realize how much I love the sport, like the competition, like the camaraderie and intermingling with the fans, building sponsor programs, all of it," he said.

"Getting a year behind me and not being at Daytona, I just missed that a lot. I have the itch to get back and do what I know I can do well -- drive a race car."

Easier said than done. Anyone that knows NASCAR knows it is the consummate out of sight, out of mind business. Just walking back in after a year off is difficult for everyone, impossible for some.

Burton is committed. He plans to be more visible at the racetrack in 2006, and is discussing possible sponsorship opportunities with NASCAR's brass and other industry movers and shakers "so I can bring something other than just myself to a team."

That could be essential. Money talks these days. Burton's quest would be far less strenuous were he able to offer sponsorship dollars as part of the package.

He is uncertain just how many offers have already come his way, but knows of just one hat that currently holds his name. And that team is a project.

Amazing. Four years ago, Burton won the Daytona 500, he's one of NASCAR's most popular drivers, especially among core fans, and his lone employment opportunity is with a start-up team that may or may not ever so much as crank an engine?

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"I know my name's been put in the hat. It would be part-time '06, full-time '07," Burton said of the potential ride. "It's not always easy to find a sponsor that will support a Nextel Cup team the way it needs to be supported, so it takes a while.

"It's going to have to be the right sponsor, the timing has to be right. It's not an easy thing to accomplish."

Burton cited financial backing and resources as other reasons he's been reluctant to align with a team to date. Once again, anyone that knows NASCAR knows the driver is but one small variable in a complex equation.

"The nature of the sport, and how it's changed, has made the driver more dependent than he was, even six or seven years ago, on his support group," Burton said. "So acknowledging that, I think you have to be a little more selective on what you're willing to do and not do.

"There's no guarantees in this sport, but I do want to feel like I have a fighting chance before I get there. I just don't feel like I've gotten the opportunity I've needed to come right of the box with the kind of support it takes."

Many industry experts felt he would get a shot at Hall of Fame Racing's No. 96 Chevrolet. He didn't.

"I think Tony [Raines] is a good guy and can do a good job. I think I could do a better job, but people like to find someone who can be the next whoever," Burton said.

That begs the question, how significant has the youth movement been in limiting Burton's progress?

"I think, certainly, it has been [a factor]," Burton said. "The car owners are doing tryouts and developing drivers.

"It's different than it was when myself and my brother [Jeff] and [Joe] Nemechek and Jeff Gordon and Steve Grissom came from the Busch Series to the Cup Series. The nature of that has changed quite a bit.

"It can definitely be a hindrance. I don't think there's any question about that."

Raines, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, Travis Kvapil, Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin, J.J. Yeley, David Stremme, Reed Sorenson and Brent Sherman have all landed Nextel Cup Series jobs since Burton last graced the track.

Upon further review, the Busch Series doesn't look so bad.

"I think having had a little bit of time to reflect on it, it's a way to get back out there and start meeting some of the new people in the sport, do a good job on and off the track and have some fun," Burton said. "Most people know I'm not ready to just put the helmet in the closet.

Inside the Numbers Ward Burton's Cup career Year Starts W T5 T10 1994 26 0 1 2 1995 29 1 3 6 1996 27 0 0 4 1997 31 0 0 7 1998 33 0 1 5 1999 34 0 6 16 2000 34 1 4 17 2001 36 1 6 10 2002 36 2 3 8 2003 36 0 0 4 2004 34 0 0 3 Totals 356 5 24 82

"I'm willing to do what I have to do."

And be certain, this is about racing. Burton is a conservative spender and has a solid nest egg stashed away. He doesn't need the money. He needs the rush.

"Naw, hell naw. It's not about money. Never was, never has been," Burton said. "I don't think, for the most part, any of us are out there just for the money. It is an added attraction, no doubt, because we all have to make ends meet. But it's not about money.

"I don't know how you determine somebody's rich or not. I don't consider myself rich. But the sport's allowed me to do a lot of things I would've been able to do without the sport. With all the federal programs we've been involved with and conservation and being a spokesperson for this or that, being on the board of game and fisheries, all that stuff.

"I owe the sport of NASCAR all that. Because really, when it comes down to it, I'm just a country Virginian that's been real lucky to have some success in racing."

And he's ready to reestablish it.

The opinions expressed are solely of the writer.