Harrison Burton’s three-year run as driver of the Wood Brothers’ No. 21 Mustang Dark Horse will come to an end this weekend in the Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway.
Burton’s time with the Wood Brothers will be remembered mostly for his performance on Aug. 24, 2024, at Daytona International Speedway when his gutsy charge on the final lap of the Coke Zero Sugar 400 delivered the Woods their 100th Cup Series victory. The win also guaranteed that the Woods will finish at least 16th in the final 2024 points standings due to their inclusion in the Playoffs, where the points were reset for the participants.
“Our Dad got our team’s first win, and Harrison got our 100th in the Cup Series,” Eddie Wood said. “There’s something very special about that.”
A photo of Burton now hangs on the Winner’s Wall in the Wood Brothers Racing Museum in Stuart, Va.
Burton’s photo soon won’t be the museum’s only permanent reminder of that milestone victory. His winning Mustang Dark Horse has been decommissioned and will be put on display at the museum “It’s just like it finished the race at Daytona,” Wood said. “It has the same engine, and it still has all the grit and grime on it.”
That’s just like the Ford that Trevor Bayne drove to victory in the 2011 Daytona 500. It’s on display in the Henry Ford museum, and after all these years still looks just like it did when Bayne pulled off the track after the Woods’ fifth Daytona 500 win in the Cup Series.
Wood said that just as the Daytona 500-winning car driven by Bayne and the victory it delivered have created a strong, lasting connection between Bayne and the team owners, the preservation of Burton’s winning car will do the same for his family’s relationship with their departing driver.
“Everyone who has ever driven for us or worked here remains like family to us,” Wood said. “Having the 100th-win car on permanent display keeps a strong bond between Harrison and our family even though we won’t be racing together.”
But there’s still one more race with Burton behind the wheel of the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Mustang Dark Horse, and Wood is hoping they end the season on a positive note.
“Most everyone will be focused on the Championship battle, and we will be pulling for one of the Team Penske drivers to take the title,” Wood said. “As for our team, I’ll be happy with a good, clean run to close out the season, and then we’ll all start focusing on 2025.”
Practice for the season finale is set for Friday at 4:05 p.m. local time (7:05 Eastern Time), and qualifying will be held Saturday at 3:05 p.m. (6:05 p.m. Eastern) with TV coverage for both events on USA Network.
Sunday’s 312-lap, 312-mile race is scheduled to get the green flag just after 1 p.m. (3 p.m. Eastern) with NBC carrying the TV broadcast.
Stage breaks are planned for Laps 60 and 185.
WBR PR
