RICHMOND, Va. -- Jeff Burton, of all people, ought to know a Nextel Cup championship isn't won in the first 10 races of the season -- especially in the Chase for the Nextel Cup era.

But the home-state favorite from South Boston, Va., could be excused for being bitterly disappointed that the engine in his No. 31 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet broke after just 139 of 400 laps in Sunday's Crown Royal presents the Jim Stewart 400 at Richmond International Raceway.

Lap-by-Lap

Jeff Burton had engine problems early but his teammates put together top-10 runs in the Crown Royal presents the Jim Stewart 400 at Richmond on Sunday.

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Burton finished 43rd while defending Nextel Cup champion Jimmie Johnson won the fourth Car of Tomorrow race this season. Current point leader Jeff Gordon was fourth.

Burton, like most true racers, competes to win events. So after he roared from his paltry 39th starting position to 25th by Lap 37 and then into the top 10 only five laps later, he had high hopes of making it to Victory Lane.

But less than 100 laps later, his car was in the garage and Burton's spirits were momentarily in the trash. He exited his car and flung a water bottle. He gave a short statement to the live TV broadcast and little more to a throng of print, radio and local TV reporters: 50 words, to be exact.

"You just can't win championships like this," Burton told the FOX TV audience. "It's really frustrating."

After loading his team's car, crew chief Scott Miller briefly went to pit road before leaving the track. Owner Richard Childress reportedly was upstairs in the GM Goodwrench suite and was also unavailable to offer his opinion on Burton and his team's title chances.

The bottom line was that Burton could have saved the short-term spike in his blood pressure. He came into the day second in the championship, 203 points behind Gordon.

Although Burton finished exactly where he feared, 43rd, he only fell to fifth in points, albeit 339 behind Gordon, whose finish padded his lead over everyone.

After the series returns to Richmond for Race 26 in September, the standings will be reset for the top-12 drivers competing in the Chase. Drivers who have won will be seeded based on their number of victories.

Despite the fact Burton's already won this season, Johnson scored his fourth victory, giving him the going-into-the-Chase advantage, if the status quo maintains.

Burton finished second in the first Car of Tomorrow race, and then sixth and 13th in the other two, so that added to his expectations of at least contending for the win Sunday.

After he changed clothes and emerged from his hauler, Burton was asked the source of his frustration.

"That's a pretty stupid question," the usually level-headed Virginian snapped. "You have a good car and I'm sitting here going to finish dead last [so why I'm frustrated] that's pretty obvious."

RCR's assistant head engine builder Danny Lawrence said Burton's engine suffered a broken valve and, even though Lawrence was worried a valve train problem that affected the engines in two of three RCR cars last fall at Dover might recur, it didn't as Kevin Harvick finished seventh and Clint Bowyer, ninth.

"When we get [Burton's engine] back to the shop we'll look at everything, but the head of the valve broke off and it goes through the engine and creates a lot of damage -- that's why we can't keep running it," Lawrence said. "The other cars all have the same parts and generally when something like this happens, it's a parts failure.

"We'll just have to see on the other cars, but you're always concerned because it's the same parts."

Burton knew while his engine was running, it was a good piece.

"The Lenox Chevrolet was 20 laps into a run and the car was really fast," Burton said. "We were marching up through there nicely [then] I broke the engine -- I don't know why.

"We were only turning like 3,800 RPMs here with this car. It just ate itself up."

Teams typically turn their engines between 8,500 and 9,500 RPM at Richmond, depending on gearing.