Burton On Playoffs: ‘It’s On Our Mind To Make Some Noise’

Harrison Burton is one of the surprises in the NASCAR Xfinity Series playoff field. (Matthew Thacker/Nigel Kinrade Photography)

CONCORD, N.C. – After edging out his cousin one week ago for the final berth on the NASCAR Xfinity Series playoff grid, Harrison Burton has his sights set on what lies ahead in his return to the postseason.

The 24-year-old from Huntersville, N.C., spent the regular season carving out his name as one of the ‘under the radar’ contenders in the Xfinity Series, driving for the developing AM Racing organization in a career revitalization campaign.

After winning his way into the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs in 2024, only to be let go from Wood Brothers Racing, Burton took his lessons learned from his three seasons at the premier level and turned them into a surprise playoff berth in stock-car racing’s second tier.

Burton earned two top fives and nine top 10s through the first 26 races this year, but was a consistent top-15 runner on speed the majority of the time.

He has experience with the elimination-style playoff format in both the Cup Series and Xfinity Series, and believes that his prior playoff runs will be beneficial as he tries to make it all the way to the championship race at Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway in November.

“I think just in general, having experience in the Cup Series and in the playoffs in the Cup Series is huge,” Burton said during Xfinity Series Playoff Media Day on Tuesday. “Having done that, you understand the level of competitiveness that you have to bring and the level of detail that you have to bring to succeed. Last year, we had a mechanical failure, had a tire blow, and we got crashed on the last lap, so three things that you don’t really have on your bingo card to take you out that took us out in round one.

“You just have to learn from that and grow from that in the best way possible, and realize that controlling what you can control is all we can really do as a race team.”

Burton has been one of the key pieces of the puzzle in helping AM Racing grow out of the struggles of the 2024 season, which saw the team field the No. 15 Ford full-time for Hailie Deegan before parting ways with her just after the halfway mark of the season due to poor performance.

The seat was then filled by six other drivers for the remainder of the season, but AM Racing still struggled to find speed. Since joining the team this year, however, Burton and veteran crew chief Danny Efland have led the squad to its first playoff berth in just its third year racing in the Xfinity Series.

It’s something that the second-generation driver recognizes as “a huge deal” given the lower expectations that many pundits had placed on the pairing going into 2025.

Harrison Burton (Declan Wayman/Motorsports Hotspot photo)

“It’s big,” Burton said. “It’s a really cool accomplishment for our whole group. It’s not just me. There are a lot of people who have put a lot of effort into making this race car go the way it has, and that’s been really rewarding. The first few races, we were literally worried about making the race at Daytona and at COTA. We weren’t locked in because our points weren’t enough from last year, so to build it to being in the playoffs and running well and performing well has been very rewarding.”

In a season marked by intense competition in the Xfinity Series, where rookie sensation Connor Zilisch and veterans including Justin Allgaier and Austin Hill are continuing to making their marks, Burton finds himself right in the middle of the storm.

It’s not only reflective of his own status as a returning face to the Xfinity grid, but also of his team's as they prepare for their first playoff experience, while leaning on Burton’s previous knowledge.

“The young guys are very fast and very aggressive. Then you have veterans still around, like Austin Hill, Justin Allgaier, and guys like that who have been around for a few years now and are experienced. For us, we’re kind of the awkward in-between,” Burton admitted. “I’m kind of experienced, but also kind of new to the series, and then our race team is certainly new to being in these situations, so we’re just trying to set ourselves and find our own path.

“As we go through this playoff, there’s a real path for us forward, and I think we can certainly advance ourselves to the next round and then take it one race at a time after that. It’s certainly on our mind to make some noise.”

In terms of starting the postseason off strong, Burton couldn’t pick a much better opening venue than Bristol Motor Speedway. He has four top-10 finishes in five career Xfinity Series starts at The Last Great Colosseum, as well as a pole qualifying effort from the spring race in 2020.

Burton started 10th at Bristol in April, but ran into problems midway through the race and ended up four laps down in 26th by the checkered flag.

If he can rebound this time around, it will make an early statement about his chances to upset some of the favorites in the championship pursuit this fall.

“I’m really looking forward to getting back to Bristol this weekend. The spring race there didn’t go the way we wanted, and [the regular season finale at] Gateway was another tough one, even though we were able to lock ourselves into the playoffs,” Burton noted. “That’s why this race feels like a real shot at redemption for our team. Bristol is such a demanding track, but it’s also one of the most exciting places we go.

“Under the lights, with everything on the line in the playoffs, I feel like we have a chance to bounce back and really show the strength of this No. 25 AM Racing team.”

Coverage of Friday night’s Food City 300 airs at 7:30 p.m. ET, live on The CW, the Performance Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.