Burton: Rookie McDowell needs to 'learn some manners'
By Bob Pockrass - Associate Editor
Monday, March 31, 2008
Rusty Jarrett / Getty Images
MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Jeff Burton is considered a leader and mentor in the Sprint Cup garage.
And the Richard Childress Racing driver left Martinsville Speedway on Sunday as the leader – the points leader – and looking to become the teacher – to Michael Waltrip Racing rookie Michael McDowell.
Burton finished third in the Goody’s Cool Orange 500 but felt as if he got held up by the lapped car of McDowell in trying to catch eventual race-winner Denny Hamlin.
McDowell was making his Sprint Cup debut.
“We had something [for Hamlin],” Burton said. “We started coming back on him, and then that kid in the 00 [McDowell], he’s going to learn some manners or I’m going to teach them to him. He can choose it however he wants it but it will be one way or the other.”
McDowell, a former sports-car racer who shined on the ARCA circuit last year, understood Burton’s frustration.
“When the 11 [of Hamlin] got underneath, I let him go and I ran with him for seven laps on his bumper,” McDowell said. “When the 31 [of Burton] put a nose in there, I let him go. I never held him up. But I guess he was a little bit upset. I understand that.”
McDowell said he planned on going to talk with Burton. He wanted to explain he was trying to keep pace with David Gilliland, who was on the same lap as him.
“If I felt I was holding him up, I would have moved,” McDowell said. “At the same time the 11 was trying to pass [Gilliland]. … If you try to get out of the way, so I just ran as hard as I could all day long. If that was the wrong thing to do, then I’m sorry for [doing that to] Jeff Burton.”
Burton probably will have an explanation in response to the apology.
“No one expects anybody just to move out of the way all day long,” Burton said. “But there is a time when you do move out of the way, and there is a time that it’s OK to move out of the way. And he didn’t do that.”
Jeff Gordon quipped that McDowell ran that way for all 500 laps.
“At least he’s consistent,” Burton said.
But Burton wasn’t totally upset. After all, he left with the points lead. Last year after Martinsville, Burton was second in points and still hadn’t won yet. But he had five finishes of sixth or better, while this year he has only three finishes of sixth or better - including his victory at Bristol two weeks ago.
“I don’t think we’re running as well right now as we did this point last year,” Burton said. “Last year we were really fast … then we kind of fell off. We got where we weren’t as competitive toward the end of the year.”
Burton said that leading the points isn’t a sign that his team has hit its top stride.
“We’ve got to be better,” Burton said. “We know that everybody’s going to step it up. If we continue to run the way we’re running come July, that will be running 20th."
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