A big lockup sends @HBurtonRacing spinning into the tire barrier! pic.twitter.com/oqbwAgvezP
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 6, 2024
The already tough week for Harrison Burton got a little tougher on Wednesday afternoon at the Chicago Street Course. At the end of Group B’s Round 1 qualifying session, Burton lost control of his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse on the straightaway heading into Turn 6.
It looked like the rear brakes locked up, which sent Burton spinning. The spin would end with a nearly-flush hit into the Turn 6 tire barrier with the driver’s side door of Burton’s race car.
Burton would sit stopped on track as he and his team attempted to diagnose the amount of damage on his race car. The driver sounded winded on the radio as he talked things over with his team.
The 23-year-0ld driver had turned a lap time good enough for the 31st-starting spot for Sunday’s Grant Park 165 prior to the crash. His team will likely need to make repairs, which would result in Burton starting at the rear of the field for unapproved adjustments.
On Wednesday, Burton officially received the news that he would not be returning to the Wood Brothers Racing team at the conclusion of the 2024 season as Josh Berry will move over into that ride from the shuttering Stewart-Haas Racing team.
Burton, who is still looking for a ride for the 2025 NASCAR season, responded to the news with grace in a video post that he shared to social media on Wednesday.