Speed not yet translating to wins for Jeff Burton

April 16, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

Growing Pains

Associated Press

FORT WORTH, Texas

Jeff Burton had been running some of the fastest laps at Phoenix before he was penalized for an improper pit stop.

At Martinsville, he was in a two-car battle with Denny Hamlin up front at when he lost a tire with eight laps left. Then there was an unlucky break created by an untimely caution when he was leading late at California.

“We have enough speed to be winning races,” Burton said.

Except he isn’t.

Burton hasn’t found his way to Victory Lane even though he has already led nearly twice as many laps (189) in seven races this year as he did all of last season, is one of four drivers to complete every lap and has an average running position of 12.9 that is bettered only by Jimmie Johnson and three others.

“I feel good about where we are. I’m disappointed that we’ve made the mistakes that we’ve made,” Burton said. “But the thing that we have is speed. When you have speed, all the little mistakes are exposed.”

Burton is still looking for his first NASCAR Sprint Cup championship in his 17th season.

“I think we’re ready to challenge for a championship,” the 42-year-old driver said. “I think we have the speed to contend for the championship, I think we have the team, and I think we have the fundamental basics to contend and win a championship.”

Burton finished last season with four consecutive top-10 finishes after Todd Berrier, a veteran in the Richard Childress Racing organization, took over as his crew chief.

Despite that quick success, Burton said they are still learning each other.

“And some of those growing pains are showing,” he said.

Burton was penalized a lap and knocked out of contention midway through last weekend’s race at Phoenix International Raceway after his crew worked on the No. 31 Chevrolet when it was partially outside the team’s pit stall. He got back on the lead lap, but still had his worst finish of the season at 25th.

Maybe Burton can have a Texas turnaround.

He has won twice at the 11‚Ñ2-mile high-banked Texas track — having speed is a good thing at one of the fastest Cup circuits.

The first of Burton’s 21 career Cup victories came in the track’s inaugural event in 1997.

“I remember winning there. I lost my wedding ring in Victory Lane. We found it,” Burton said. “Even though it was my first win, I can honestly tell you that by Tuesday I was kind of over it and ready to go onto the next thing. That’s just my personality. Unfortunately, I don’t take enough time to enjoy things sometimes.”

Ten years later, Burton led only the last lap to become the first two-time Texas winner. (Carl Edwards swept the 2008 races to give him three wins there, but there are no other multiple winners at Texas).

That second win at Texas is one of Burton’s four for Childress since moving over from Roush Racing midway through the 2004 season.

But Burton has a 48-race victory drought since last winning at Charlotte in October 2008. That is the team’s drought as well.

All three Childress drivers — Burton, Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick — finished in the top-11 in each of the first three races this season.