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Growing up surrounded by the NASCAR world, Harrison Burton admitted he was nervous around Kevin Harvick when he was a little kid.
Son of former NASCAR Cup Series driver Jeff Burton, Harrison grew up touring the racetracks with his dad in his childhood. While he looked up to many drivers as his "dad's buddies", he was nervous around Kevin Harvick, who always maintained a serious demeanor.
Speaking to Jeff Gluck from The Athletic, the #21 Wood Brothers Racing driver opened up about his childhood. He also spoke about the NASCAR heroes who inspired him to follow in his dad's footsteps.
"When I was a little kid, I got nervous around Kevin Harvick. He’s a very serious guy. I obviously had a lot of respect for those guys and really wanted to do what they did," he said.
Burton also referred to Clint Bowyer as his "cool uncle" as he has many childhood memories associated with him. The 22-year-old also had a special liking for Mark Martin, who drove alongside his father for Jack Roush for many years.
"Clint Bowyer was like the cool uncle. Me and my sister (Paige) have a lot of stories hanging out with Clint. He was the most approachable guy you could ever talk to, so as a 12-year-old, he was the go-to guy."
He added:
"They were just my dad’s buddies. That’s how I looked at them. There’s a few of them who were different, like Mark (Martin) was one guy that was like, 'Ooh, that’s Mark Martin.' You knew who that was even when I was a little kid."
While Harrison Burton couldn't get to race alongside his favorite uncles, he does share the grid with Kevin Harvick. He has few races left to race alongside the 47-year-old, who is set to retire after the 2023 season.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. wants NASCAR to review its process after Kevin Harvick's recent penalty
Kevin Harvick was a contender to win the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway until an untimely caution and a penalty dropped him to the rear of the field.
The #4 Stewart Haas Racing driver had committed to pit when Ryan Newman spun out bringing the caution and closing the pitlane. Harvick couldn't change his trajectory as he entered the pitlane when it was closed and earned himself a penalty.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. discussed the incident as he wants NASCAR to review the process for issuing penalties for such close circumstances.
“This isn’t a fault of NASCAR. This is a reaction to learning and having this process play out and us go, ‘Okay, is this really the best way to be doing this?’ I’d love to know NASCAR’s opinion on should we adjust what is committed to pit road,” he said on Dale Jr. Download.
“I feel like maybe we need to look if you’re beyond the box and committed to the pit road, you’re free and clear to go ahead and come down pit road. It’s a balls and strikes kind of a thing. It’s not giving an advantage to this team. It just so happens that the caution comes out in this moment. It’s not manipulation or manufactured," he added.
Kevin Harvick recovered to a 19th-place finish at the end of the race.
