Only a handful of Winston Cup drivers will always say what's on their mind. Jeff Burton is one of them. Whether it's safety or a competitive issue, Burton realizes that the sport benefits from a healthy debate. Burton recently spoke with Stock Car Racing about his evolution into a racing spokesman.
SCR: For starters, you've been lucky enough to experience success in your NASCAR Winston Cup career. As part of that, many fans and the media have really started to pay attention to your comments and what you have on your mind relating to a lot of issues in racing. How do you feel about the fact that you have become one of NASCAR's leading spokesmen?
Burton: Early in my career, I tried to do the stereotypical driver thing by getting out of my car and thanking my sponsors and telling the fans what it is you think they want to hear. That's just manipulating the people you're talking to as well as the fans because people want to know the truth and the real story. Figuring out how to do that in a manner that is not offensive can be tough at times. The rule I have is to always tell the truth as I see it, but also doing it in a way that's polished and not brash. Tony Stewart is a great race car driver and a good person, and I've told him that. I've told him he needs to keep telling the truth; he just needs to find a way to say it a little nicer. I truly respect Tony for standing up for what he believes in because there are a lot of drivers who don't do that. A lot of drivers are just toeing the company line. It's all a matter of being able to open up so the fans can really get to know who you are, and that means not always saying things that are politically correct.
SCR: How important is it for Winston Cup drivers to speak what's on their minds if there are valid issues, such as safety, that need to be addressed?
Burton: Brian France said something to me probably four years ago because he was perturbed that the announcers in the booth wouldn't call NASCAR when they made a mistake. He was also bothered by the fact that the drivers wouldn't admit it when they made mistakes. That took me by surprise. What Brian was saying was that for us to have credibility as a sport, we can't always worry about doing the politically correct things. It has to be about the truth. John Madden does a great job of calling NFL games and Dick Vitale does a great job of calling college basketball games. They give praise when and where praise is due, but they will also point the finger at somebody when they make a mistake. It is a fine balance because you can't always be critical and talk about the bad stuff, but you have to be willing to do it because it gives those sports credibility. If all race fans hear is just the good stuff and when people make mistakes nobody says anything, that's not helping to build our credibility.
Burton says Winston Cup drivers...
Burton says Winston Cup drivers have a great opportunity to lead by example and, in return, influence competitors at the grass roots level.
SCR: Do you agree drivers have a balancing act when it comes to taking important issues to the media as opposed to NASCAR officials?
Burton: What's gone on in Winston Cup racing since I've been in it-and it gets worse every year-is the owners, drivers and the manufacturers use the media to try to manipulate what NASCAR does. I don't like that approach. I think a straightforward, honest discussion can take place behind closed doors in privacy. Then we can inform the media what's going on so they can inform the fans. It's kind of like our military. We don't need to tell everybody in the media about all the details if it puts the troops at risk. That's just not productive. So then it becomes a matter of deciding how much of the whole story we talk to the media about. When you start confusing all that, it can get confusing and everybody totally misses the point.