Driver Jeremiah Burton in the No. 34 Skip Barber Racing Honda Civic Type R is new to the TC America powered by Skip Barber series, first joining the series at Circuit Of The Americas. Burton took to the FIA Grade 1 circuit for the first professional race of his career and captured the moment for Donut Media fans on YouTube.
Burton is a comedic personality known for hosting various series and segments on Donut Media, an American automotive content brand with a casual eight million subscribers on its YouTube channel. He entertains the masses with intelligent musings and humor alongside co-hosts where the collection of male presenters tests, reviews, reacts and explains for automotive fans.
While Burton's interest in racing may seem consistent with his current career path, he has a far more interesting past than a car guy doing things with cars.
“Undergraduate, I studied mechanical engineering and then went to graduate school to study biomedical engineering at the University of Florida,” Burton said. “I worked in the aerospace industry and then moved into the biomedical space, working in Los Angeles for a company that focused on adult cardiac stem cells.
“I was the Associate Director of Research for a bit, and then one day decided I wanted to work in the entertainment industry. That's when I left to work for Donut. When I first moved out to LA, I spent every hour while not at work doing some form of comedy or acting class. I somehow found a pocket of people who like the science and engineering around cars and can geek out over the nerdy stuff but be goofy at the same time.”
The love of racing wasn’t sparked by career transition. Like many of his competitors, Burton was interested in the sport at a young age. What may be more unique is that he wasn’t at a go-kart track but during a sports car race.
“My dad took me to a Grand-AM Rolex Sports Car race at Daytona (International Speedway) when I was a kid to see one of his friends race a Corvette in the GT class,” Burton said. “At that point, I had only watched NASCAR, so seeing some cars rip around a track and not just go round and round in a circle gave me a new perspective on racing. The thing that really made me think that I could do this was that the guy racing, I can too.”
The dream came to realization at COTA this year with the Skip Barber Racing team. Burton is a Skip Barber Racing School graduate, making his move into the TC America series seamless. He documented the race with Donut Media. He highlights his journey from student to driver and includes an emotional moment of gratefulness not usually showcased in sports.
“That entire weekend was a whirlwind of emotions,” Burton said. “Nervous, happy, excited, scared. I think just that moment in the car by myself it all came to a head, I was in the moment and thinking about how fortunate I am to be in the position I’m in. To live out a childhood dream, not everyone can say that. I just felt so blessed to be sitting in that seat, thinking of all the hard work the crew put into getting me in that car, all the hard work the guys back at Donut put into documenting this experience. All of that was running through my head at that moment.”
As Burton pushes further into the racing community and carves out a professional career, he’s coming to terms with what it takes to build a win.
“A one-second a lap difference is a ton,” Burton said. “It doesn't seem like that much on paper, but in real life that one second adds up fast. And I have a lot of work to do to be more competitive. Everyone in this TC Class has a lot of experience driving, and I have to curb my expectations a bit.
“I am super competitive and want to win and be successful in everything I do, so it's a tough pill to swallow knowing you're not the best out there, but it’s a battle of persistence. I've never been the type of person to be great at something off the jump. But I'm dedicated and that in my experience has given me the upper hand in a lot of situations in life.”
The TC America powered by Skip Barber series has three weekends remaining on the 2023 calendar. With two races a weekend, Burton still has plenty of time to work toward his first podium of the season. No better track to reach the accomplishment as three iconic tracks await as options- Road America, Sebring International Raceway and Indianapolis Motor Speedway.