Burton says rivalry talk a bit premature

Thursday, Oct. 8, 1998 | 10:34 a.m.

By DICK BRINSTER

AP Sports Writer

Despite the great rivalry dominating the NASCAR season, Jeff Burton is beginning to be noticed.

Even the weekly showdowns between Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin can't obscure his rise. He's now expected to run in the top five in virtually every race, and that makes anonymity difficult.

At 39, Martin figures to battle the 27-year-old Gordon for a few more seasons - perhaps even finishing 1-2 as they have done often in dominating NASCAR's Winston Cup circuit. But the 31-year-old Burton should be around long after teammate Martin has retired.

"Everyone wants to say that we are the next big rivalry," Burton said of Gordon. "But it's too soon to tell."

Is it?

Doesn't Burton drive for Roush Racing, whose owner is an avowed adversary of Gordon's brilliant crew chief? Didn't Burton and Gordon battle to the last rpm the last two years in the great Southern 500?

Wasn't that Burton who beat Gordon by a hood-length last month in Richmond, Va. - in one of the great finishes in NASCAR history? Isn't Gordon expected to be chasing Burton any time they're on a flat oval?

"We've already had some memorable moments, and I look forward to many more," Burton said. "But they've won a lot of races, and we're only starting."

Starting the season is something Burton isn't very good at. A poor beginning has relegated him to fifth in the series standings.

He finished 40th in the season-opening Daytona 500 in a field of 43, the first of four placements of 25th or worse in the first nine races. By late April, Burton was 16th in points, and a serious title bid was already out of the question.

"If you look at our record, you don't see anything but top-10s and 38s," he explained. "That's a hard way to earn points."

Then, there is the problem of position on the starting grid. Its importance can't be minimized - even in a 500-mile race - because cars coming through traffic are used up and abused by contact far more than those running at the front.

"We're not real good at qualifying," said Burton, who failed to start better than 10th in a 13-race stretch while Gordon had the pole five times.

Numbers like those make Burton wonder why everybody wants to talk about a rivalry.

"It's a great compliment, sure, but for there to be a rivalry, we've got to keeping working hard and get to their level," he said. "But there are a lot of very talented young drivers already in Winston Cup."

Gordon also realizes that, but expects Burton to be the biggest obstacle as he continues his quest for so many records in a career that could span two more decades.

"First of all, he's a great driver, one who always races you hard and clean," Gordon said. "If that was all, it would be tough enough.

"But then you have to consider that he's Mark's teammate, so, you know they're sharing a shop and exchanging information. Together, they are an awesome combination, and they're very difficult to beat."

Gordon has done that 10 times this season as he seeks his third series title in four years. Martin has seven wins, and Burton two of five for his career. The other 40 drivers have combined for nine victories, but only one since June.

Burton doesn't consider himself at the level of Gordon or Martin because he isn't winning enough.

"You can run first all day long and finish 20th, and guess what? You finished 20th," he said. "No matter how you run, that finish is the only thing that matters.

''And we didn't do a very good job of finishing off races that we were running well in."

Until that changes, Burton will not consider himself legitimate competition on a weekly basis. And he does not believe a serious battle can be waged for the championship without a driver being strong at every track.

"We're not that far from contention," Burton said. "But before we can talk about winning the championship, we have to be in front or in contention from the beginning of the year."