Harrison Burton Joins Peterson Racing On Multi-Year Deal

Doug Peterson (left) and Harrison Burton. (Jacob Seelman/SWN photo)

By Jacob Seelman, SWN News Editor

CONCORD, N.C. (Oct. 11, 2026) – Harrison Burton has found his next landing spot in the NASCAR garage.

Announced Sunday afternoon prior to the start of a doubleheader race day at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Burton will move to Peterson Racing in a multi-year agreement, continuing to compete full time in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

The 26-year-old, second-generation driver will pilot the No. 78 Chevrolet as a teammate to short-track ace Lee Pulliam, who was announced to owner Doug Peterson’s flagship No. 87 entry back on Aug. 25.

Burton moves over to Peterson Racing and Chevrolet from Sam Hunt Racing and Toyota, where he has spent the full 2026 season in O’Reilly Series competition.

Altogether, Burton boasts 287 NASCAR national series starts, including 136 O’Reilly Series appearances over five seasons dating back to 2019. He’s a four-time winner in the O’Reilly Series, with three postseason berths (2020, ’21, ’25) to his credit.

“I am really excited to join Peterson Racing and be a part of what they are building,” said Burton, who also won a NASCAR Cup Series race in 2024 at Daytona (Fla.) Int’l Speedway with the legendary Wood Brothers Racing team. “It is a blessing to continue my career, and I feel this is a great opportunity to grow alongside this team as we focus on becoming a race winning organization. They have done a great job in putting together a group that is primed to take the next steps in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

“I just feel that Peterson Racing and I are a great fit and share the same goals of going to the racetrack and winning,” Burton continued. “I am excited to get to work and chasing that goal together.”

Next season will mark the first time since the inception of Peterson Racing’s NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series program that it will field two full-time entries.

“We are excited about adding Harrison to our program and expanding to a two-car operation in 2027,” said team general manager Chris Seibel. “Harrison is a great fit with what we have built so far at Peterson Racing, and we feel he will be a key piece to our continued growth process. We think that Harrison and Lee make a special combination of drivers, and we look forward to them representing us on the track in 2027.”

In addition to announcing Burton as its second driver, the team revealed Sunday that it will move into a new race shop on the Richard Childress Racing campus in Welcome, N.C.

That transition will begin after the conclusion of the current O’Reilly Series season in November.

“Being on their campus, for us, will be huge. We’ll be in their building on a very regular basis. So I'm sure they'll come and take a look at things that we have and how we can improve them,” said team owner Doug Peterson. “It’s kind of everything coming together and seeing where we’re at right now, but seeing where we can be. I still race a little bit, and I always think to myself, ‘OK, can I win this thing?’ Unfortunately, in my case, it’s probably not going to happen. But I still want to try to win. So I’m really, really hoping for some positive things next year in a big way.”

“The move to the RCR campus is another strong step in the growth of this Peterson Racing organization,” added Burton. “I feel confident that bringing my experiences gained from racing with other organizations throughout my career combined with working alongside the structure they have built thus far at Peterson Racing that we will be able to continue this growth process. I am excited to have a teammate the caliber of Lee Pulliam, and I think we will be great assets for each other. This is truly a unique situation that I embrace and am excited about.”

SWN will have continued coverage of this news story in the coming days.

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