Inside Line Promotions – WAMPUM, Pa. (Oct. 27, 2020) – Trey Burke has a talent for jumping in a new car and adjusting quickly to his surroundings.
Burke was strictly a dirt racer entering the 2020 season. Then he decided to tackle asphalt with the Lucas Oil School of Racing and it didn’t take long for Burke to show his prowess competing in a different arena.
When the Lucas Oil season ended in early October Burke went looking for another challenge. He found it two weekends ago running a F1600 car under the Formula Race Promotions banner.
Burke adjusted quickly and landed two top-five finishes in three events at Pittsburgh International Race Complex racing for Rice Race Prep. He was going for the lead in the final event when he had contact with another car and sustained suspension woes.
“I’m very pleased,” the 15-year-old Burke said. “I think the whole team was pleased. Going into the weekend, some of the other teams had drivers who have been racing the whole year. My teammate, Simon Sikes, is in contention for the point championship and they told me, ‘Hey, it would be nice if you could help Simon out and put some pressure on these other drivers.’ I know it helped because he had some good results. I think that, combined with everything else — the learning, the racing — everybody was really pleased.”
Before being fitted in the car and rolling out for practice, Burke had never driven a manual gear-box machine. It didn’t take long for him to adjust as he qualified sixth in his first attempt around the circuit.
Burke continued to impress under race conditions, learning the ropes and coming away with a respectable fifth-place finish on Oct. 17. The following day he returned and placed fourth in the second event of the weekend.
In the finale later that day, Burke continued to improve and was ready to contend for a win. He started third on the grid and was battling for the lead when contact with another car dropped him to 13th and put him out of the event.
“It was different, for sure,” he said. “I think the biggest issue was learning the manual gear box. I had never had to use one before and never raced with one.
“My teammate, Simon Sikes, really helped me out with a lot (with) the lines, looking at data and what to do. These cars race in a similar way to the Lucas cars in that it’s hard to break the draft. Everybody is together and there is close, hard racing. I think I was able to use that experience and everything else I knew to really get going.”
It’s been a weird 2020 season with the pandemic altering schedules, but it hasn’t stopped Burke from taking advantage of his opportunities.
Burke made the move to asphalt early on and excelled in his first stint with the Lucas Oil Racing School, finishing sixth in the final standings. When that was done, he moved over to the Formula Race Promotions Series and shined.
“I think the craziest thing about it is that coming into this year we thought we were just going to keep running sprint cars,” he said. “We had no idea what asphalt racing was about. I just went to Joe (Dooling) and said, ‘Hey, it would be nice if we could go to IndyCar and that’s when it started to take off.
“At the beginning of the year with the Lucas School, I didn’t look like an asphalt driver and didn’t know what I was doing, but the last race at Sebring, we went 10th to third despite fighting massive power issues. So I think doing well there and jumping in these cars and being able to go with the flow, I’m pleased. I know 2020 has been kind of rough, but we’ve made good progress.”
Next up for Burke will be races this Friday and Saturday at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta in Braselton, Ga.
QUICK RESULTS –
Oct. 17 – Pittsburgh International Race Complex in Wampum, Pa. – Qualifying: 6; Feature: 5 (6).
Oct. 18 – Pittsburgh International Race Complex in Wampum, Pa. – Feature: 4 (5).
Oct. 18 – Pittsburgh International Race Complex in Wampum, Pa. – Feature: 13 (3).
SEASON STATS –
29 races, 2 wins, 14 top fives, 22 top 10s
UP NEXT –
Friday and Saturday at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta in Braselton, Ga.
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://treyburke.myracepass.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/treyburkeracing
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/treyburkeracing/
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Dooling Machine Products
Dooling Machine Products services the industrial market specializing in rotating equipment. The Freeport, TX, works with chemical plants, refineries, and industrial manufacturers.
“Joe Dooling is not only our dirt-car owner, he is our biggest sponsor,” Burke said. “He is the reason this is all possible and we are super grateful to have him. He is understanding and knows you don’t always run well. He knows we didn’t have good luck and isn’t hard on the me because of something that was out of my control. That’s really good to have because it keeps me from getting down on myself.”
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.
To meet the media relations needs of your program by joining Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or Shawn@InsideLinePromotions.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.