Tag: Josh Berry

Stewart-Haas swaps pit crews to boost Briscoe’s playoff chances

Stewart-Haas Racing is swapping pit crews ahead of Sunday’s race at Kansas Speedway – the start of the Round of 12 in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Chase Briscoe, who is still championship eligible and the only Stewart-Haas driver who earned a …

Stewart-Haas Racing is swapping pit crews ahead of Sunday’s race at Kansas Speedway — the start of the Round of 12 in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.

Chase Briscoe, who is still championship eligible and the only Stewart-Haas driver who earned a postseason berth, will be pitted by the crew that had been on Josh Berry’s No. 4 Ford Mustang. Briscoe’s crew, who had been with him on the No. 14 Ford Mustang, will go to work with Berry.

“It’s been humbling, just from the whole company, all embracing the [No.] 14 car and doing everything they can to make [it] have the best potential to win the championship,” Briscoe said Saturday. “That’s been cool — to have [something like 300] employees literally feel like they’re on your back and riding with you every single weekend. Then, just as a company, SHR from the day I’ve been there, has never worked as well as they have right now, all four crew chiefs, all four drivers. We even saw it last week. Noah [Gragson] was genuinely excited for me to make it onto the next round of the playoffs and and the [No.] 10 car has been going to the racetrack identical to us every week for the last three weeks, and even this week now the [No. 4 car is] as well.

“I do think that’s a little unique where, since I am the only car in, and even our situation with the whole team shutting down, all the resources, all the effort, all the focus, everything they got is on us right now. That’s different. No other team can say that. Penske still has three cars, and they’re all three trying to make the next round, where for us, especially at a place like Talladega next week, I do think it’ll make a difference just because I’m going to have three teammates that are super committed to doing everything they can to help me.”

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The crew pitting the No. 14 Ford Mustang for Briscoe beginning this weekend will be Daniel Smith (rear changer), Daniel Coffey (front changer), Evan Marchal (fueler), and Mason Flynt (tire carrier), but it’s not an entirely unfamiliar crew to Briscoe.

In 2022, Stewart-Haas put some of his crew on Kevin Harvick’s car as the latter tried to make the postseason. The change occurred in June before the Nashville Superspeedway race. This most recent swap between the No. 4 car, which Berry now drives following Harvick’s retirement, brings those members back to Briscoe on the No. 14 car.

“I’m back kind of with my original guys,” Briscoe said. “It’s tough — they’ve been able to be there and get us to this point, and that’s a decision that truthfully is made above me. I didn’t even know it was happening until they called me on Monday. The big thing I think for me is I just told those guys — I texted them all — ‘Look, you guys are just as much of the [No.] 14 team as you were last week. I know it probably doesn’t feel that way right now, but obviously, [Greg Zipadelli] and everybody at SHR felt like that’s what gave us the best opportunity to try to move on and try to advance to the next round.’”

Briscoe was one of six playoff drivers (of the 12 who have advanced to the second round) to earn two top-10 finishes in the first round of the playoffs. His average finish in the round was 16.7.

As the second round begins, Briscoe is seven points below a transfer spot.

McDowell, Berry go for wild rides at Daytona

Michael McDowell and Josh Berry had two of the most intense incidents in Saturday night’s in the Coke Zero Sugar 400. McDowell’s occurred first with nine laps to go at Daytona International Speedway. The polesitter was leading the field into Turn 1 …

Michael McDowell and Josh Berry had two of the most intense incidents in Saturday night’s in the Coke Zero Sugar 400.

McDowell’s occurred first with nine laps to go at Daytona International Speedway. The polesitter was leading the field into Turn 1 on the outside lane when he was tagged by Ford teammate Austin Cindric and sent spinning to the left. McDowell’s car was perpendicular to the field when hit in the driver’s side door by Joey Logano and lifted off the ground.

Fortunately, the car did not flip and came back down on all four wheels. McDowell was checked and released from the infield care center and said he felt fine. The incident, McDowell said, was a “wrong angle at the wrong time” event, but he didn’t want to place blame.

McDowell led 26 laps. He was classified 30th.

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“It was going over,” McDowell said. “I had my eyes closed, but whoever hit me, it felt like it set me back down because I had that moment where it got real light and it got real quiet and then I got hit, and then I was back on the ground. I haven’t seen the replay, but I’m just glad Josh Berry is okay. That one looked definitely worse than mine.

“It’s the end of a Daytona race and these things happen. Everybody is pushing hard and we had guys up there that had to win, so you know everybody is going to go for it.”

By the time McDowell was cleared and doing interviews, he watched the final wreck of the night occur involving Berry. The field was two-by-two going down the backstretch with two laps to go when there was contact between Kyle Busch and Cindric. It sent Cindric, who was leading the inside lane, into the driver’s side of Berry’s car, who was leading the outside lane.

Berry spun left to the apron and his car lifted into the air and flipped onto its roof. While on its roof, the car slid to the inside wall and hit with the front end. The impact sent Berry, still upside down, into multiple rotations before finally coming to a stop. NASCAR safety workers turned the car back over, and Berry immediately climbed out.

“Yeah, I’m all good,” the Stewart-Haas Racing driver said. “It actually wasn’t as bad as it looked. But, man, I’m bummed because we had a hell of a night going. Just such a great job by Rodney [Childers] and this whole 4 team; the car was so strong and we were in position.

“I’m really proud of the job I did tonight and really proud of the job the whole team did because we were in contention. That could have been our day. But it didn’t work out. I just want to thank everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing and Ford and NASCAR for building safe race cars; Eero for coming on board tonight. It’s disappointing, but whether we would have won or flipped, we’re going to go to work Monday and try to win next week.”

Berry led nine laps but finished 26th. Although he flipped over, Berry noted that NASCAR’s decision to remove the grass on the backstretch after Ryan Preece’s crash in the same race last year kept him from barrel-rolling.

“As bad as it looked, they made a big improvement over what Ryan had last year,” Berry said. “I just can’t believe we flipped two of our Stewart-Haas cars in a row like that.”

Berry and Wood Brothers Racing the ‘right fit’ for each side

Josh Berry repeatedly used some variation of the phrase “a good fit” Wednesday when discussing his 2025 move to Wood Brothers Racing to drive the No. 21 Ford Mustang. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe in these guys,” Berry said. “I know the …

Josh Berry repeatedly used some variation of the phrase “a good fit” Wednesday when discussing his 2025 move to Wood Brothers Racing to drive the No. 21 Ford Mustang.

“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe in these guys,” Berry said. “I know the effort that goes into putting the 21 car on track every weekend; I think that’s been pretty clear, and I feel like this is a great fit for me. There’s no excuses from my side of things. I feel like we’re going to have what we need to perform, and it should be a great opportunity.”

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Berry’s new deal came together quickly, although it wasn’t until the last week that Berry officially signed the contract. Stewart-Haas Racing publicly announcing May 28 that it was shuttering its NASCAR program at season’s end put things in motion as the season-long rumors became fact.

Wood Brothers Racing initiated the talks with Berry, who was the next candidate after the team could not come to a deal with Chase Briscoe, who signed with Joe Gibbs Racing.

Jon Wood, the president of Wood Brothers Racing, said Berry was an obvious choice. He will be the team’s fifth driver since 2016, when the company returned to full-time NASCAR Cup Series racing.

“I had committed to them pretty quickly,” Berry said. “It felt like the right fit. They didn’t waste any time and I felt like it was the right fit for me. I’m confident in what they have here, and obviously, the affiliation with Team Penske is huge. To get to work alongside Joey [Logano] and, Ryan [Blaney] and Austin [Cindric] as teammates, I think that’s another big plus. Then obviously, Ford supporting this is a big deal as well.”

Wood Brothers Racing will continue its technical alliance with Team Penske and receive manufacturer support from Ford.

“I think they’re going to look forward to having him in those meetings,” Wood said of the Penske drivers working with Berry. “With this car being so equal and so dependent on the driver, more so than in years past where it was a lot about car preparation, now a driver has a lot to do with it. They’re going to be a little more apt to listen to somebody like Josh in those meetings. He’s going to help them, and they’re going to help him.”

As the fight for results continues, Wood Brothers Racing was ready to make a change. The organization has been winless since 2016. Burton has one top-10 finish in two-and-a-half seasons.

Wood is not putting the blame solely on Burton’s shoulder, admitting perhaps it has been organization, too. Either way, not performing as the organization wants has been frustrating.

“I think we were at a point where we had given this season enough time to be pretty sure that was the road we were going to go down,” Wood said of making a driver change. “The Stewart-Haas thing, it wasn’t like flipping a light switch where one day they’re in business, and the next day they’re done. This had been going on for a while; the discussion of them going out of business, and we had more reason to think they were not going to make it than they were, and so we kind of knew once that formal announcement was made, it would be an opportunity to make those moves and have those discussions.

“But we didn’t have them until that happened. We were trying to respect the system and the process (and) not make a move or talk to any of those drivers — that included Chase [Briscoe]. We waited until it was the right time and by that time, it was too late with him. We didn’t do anything wrong — we respected the system, and we landed where we needed to be with [Josh].”

It is a multiyear deal for Berry to drive the famed No. 21.

“It’s a multiyear deal as long as I run (well),” he said with a smile. “And I don’t plan on running bad.”

Wood Brothers Racing hires Berry for ’25

Josh Berry will drive the No. 21 Ford Mustang for Wood Brothers Racing beginning next season. Berry joins the Wood family from Stewart-Haas Racing, which is shutting down at the end of the season. The 33-year-old Tennessee native is in his rookie …

Josh Berry will drive the No. 21 Ford Mustang for Wood Brothers Racing beginning next season.

Berry joins the Wood family from Stewart-Haas Racing, which is shutting down at the end of the season. The 33-year-old Tennessee native is in his rookie NASCAR Cup Series season and the No. 4 team continues to impress despite the circumstances. Berry has four top-10 finishes in the last seven races.

Before signing with Stewart-Haas to replace Kevin Harvick, Berry made 12 starts in the series as a substitute driver. He drove for Hendrick Motorsports in 2023, filling in for the injured Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman. Berry had three top-10 finishes in 10 starts. Before the ’23 season, Berry made two starts in 2021 driving for Spire Motorsports.

“When you think of the history and legacy of NASCAR, it’s hard to not think of the Wood Brothers and the incredible impact they’ve made on the sport. It’s an honor and a privilege to be a small part of carrying on that legacy,” said Berry. “To be able to add my name to the list of drivers who have piloted the iconic No. 21 is something I don’t take lightly.”

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A short track ace, Berry was noticed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. and drove late models for JR Motorsports. In a part-time Xfinity Series schedule in 2021, Berry won two races and was given a full-time ride in 2022 and ’23. Berry won three races and finished a career-best fourth in points in 2023.

Wood Brothers Racing returned to full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition in 2016. Berry will be the team’s fifth driver since that season.

Founded in 1950, Wood Brothers Racing is the longest-active team in NASCAR. The organization is sitting on 99 victories in the Cup Series.

“Over the years, we’ve had the privilege of working with a multitude of successful drivers, and now having the opportunity to add Josh Berry to that list is a significant milestone for our team,” said Jon Wood, president, Wood Brothers Racing. “Josh brings a wealth of talent and determination, evident through his success in every level of competition, from grassroots NASCAR to present day. He fits the values of our team, and we believe that with Josh behind the wheel, we will achieve great things together on the track.”

Berry will replace Harrison Burton, who has driven the No. 21 for three seasons.

Josh Berry officially joins Wood Brothers Racing for 2025 NASCAR season

Wood Brothers Racing announces that Josh Berry will drive the No. 21 Cup car full-time for the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season.

[autotag]Wood Brothers Racing[/autotag] has been connected to several drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series for 2025; however, the organization has finally announced the new driver of the No. 21 car. On Wednesday morning, Wood Brothers Racing announced that [autotag]Josh Berry[/autotag] will take over for Harrison Burton in the No. 21 car full-time starting in 2025 on a multi-year contract.

Berry currently drives for Stewart-Haas Racing and has impressed in his rookie season. The driver of the No. 4 car has two top-5 finishes and four top-10 finishes while sitting 19th in the point of standings. Berry has a best finish of third place twice at Darlington Raceway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway during the 2024 NASCAR season.

The No. 21 Cup car has struggled in the NextGen era, and this move should provide a reset for Wood Brothers Racing in 2025. Berry has only improved with more time in the Cup Series, and there’s no reason why it can’t continue. Berry has been on the verge of entering victory lane in the summer, and it wouldn’t be shocking to see him win a race before he joins Wood Brothers Racing.

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Josh Berry addresses possibility of joining Haas Factory Team in Cup for 2025

Josh Berry addresses the possibility of joining Haas Factory Team in the NASCAR Cup Series for 2025. Will Berry go to Haas Factory Team?

[autotag]Josh Berry[/autotag] has been linked to several NASCAR Cup Series teams since Stewart-Haas Racing announced it would shut down after the 2024 season. One of the latest is Wood Brothers Racing, which has been in contact with Berry. However, what about [autotag]Haas Factory Team[/autotag], which is a new NASCAR team with Gene Haas and Joe Custer?

Over the weekend at Nashville Superspeedway, Berry was asked about the idea of going to Haas Factory Team and being its driver for the 2025 NASCAR season, as reported by RACER.com. Based on his response, it seems like he won’t be staying with Haas.

“Throughout that whole process, we heard the rumors about what was going on and whether there was going to be one charter kept or two charters kept,” Berry said. “We read all that stuff on the internet like [everyone else], and that’s where I’ll leave that. I read it on the internet, so I assume that I’m not a candidate for that ride, and I’ve had no communication there.”

“I’m happy that [Gene Haas] is staying in the sport and continuing that on, and I’m really thankful for the opportunity that I got to come race at [Stewart-Haas Racing]. Obviously, there’s probably things that have happened that they required to make a change, and I respect them for that. I’m thankful for the opportunity I got, and we’re going to move forward in our own direction.”

While Berry could stay with Haas, it appears that Haas Factory Team is going in another direction. In fact, Stewart-Haas Racing driver Cole Custer is widely regarded as the top candidate for the ride. It seems likely that Berry will eventually find a ride in the Cup Series for 2025, but don’t expect it to be with Haas Factory Team.

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Berry sees opportunities, just probably not with Haas

Josh Berry said Saturday he doesn’t believe he’s in the running to drive the NASCAR Cup Series car Gene Haas will field next season considering how he heard the news. “Throughout that whole process, we heard the rumors and what was going on and …

Josh Berry said Saturday he doesn’t believe he’s in the running to drive the NASCAR Cup Series car Gene Haas will field next season considering how he heard the news.

“Throughout that whole process, we heard the rumors and what was going on and whether there was going to be one charter kept or two charters kept,” Berry said at Nashville Superspeedway. “We read all that stuff on the internet like [everyone else], and that’s where I’ll leave that. I read it on the internet, so I assume that I’m not a candidate for that ride, and I’ve had no communication there.”

Haas and co-owner Tony Stewart released a joint statement May 28 announcing the organization would cease its NASCAR operations at season’s end. On the Cup Series side, it meant the end of four teams, including Berry’s. There are also two Xfinity Series teams that compete under the Stewart-Haas banner.

But on June 20, Haas reversed course and announced he would remain in NASCAR with one of the Cup Series charters. Haas will rebrand the entity to Haas Factory Team and also continue running two Xfinity Series teams.

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“I’m happy that Gene is staying in the sport and continuing that on, and I’m really thankful for the opportunity that I got to come race at Stewart-Haas,” Berry continued. “ Obviously, there’s probably things that have happened that they required to make a change, and I respect them for that. I’m thankful for the opportunity I got, and we’re going to move forward in our own direction.”

Berry has not yet announced what he will do in 2025. As he continues to explore his options, he and crew chief Rodney Childers have expressed hope of staying together. It remains unclear how realistic that will be, and their future changes daily.

However, Berry did say he is optimistic about having a Cup Series ride next season.

“I feel good about [that],” he said. “I think our results have been really strong the last couple of months. …Winning a race is really all left that I can do. We finished in the top five, we ran up front, we led laps, we showed the potential that we can do [it], so that’s been a big confidence boost for me.

“You find a lot about yourself when your back’s against the wall, and I think everybody’s performing at a really high level — [the highest we’ve ever had, probably], and we’re fighting together. I feel like there are opportunities to come.”

Josh Berry discusses coming up short of the win at New Hampshire in 2024

Josh Berry discusses coming up short of his first NASCAR Cup Series win at New Hampshire. Find out what Berry said about the finish!

[autotag]Josh Berry[/autotag] had an opportunity for a shocking victory at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Berry was second going into NASCAR overtime but didn’t pick the front row as it struggled all day. Instead, the driver of the No. 4 car pushed Christopher Bell on the restart, and he won the USA TODAY 301. Berry came home in third place behind teammate Chase Briscoe.

Following the event, Berry talked about the final restart and what was going through his mind. Instead of ending with a storybook victory, he was on pit road talking about what could have been for the No. 4 team.

“We were debating back and forth on bottom or top [on the final restart], Berry said. “I really wanted to take the front row, but it was just — it just seemed slick down there, right, and I just felt like I would be stuck racing probably [Chase Briscoe], who would have been on the outside. Kind of like we ended up.”

“Honestly, I think I probably just — I really pushed [Christopher Bell] out there really hard, and I think that kind of checked my momentum. Then I just got a little loose off of two and got Chase back to my left rear. He kind of drug me back, and we got stuck racing and had to drag race there to the line.”

Berry has been very impressive lately, as he now has two straight top-7 finishes while earning at least 43 points in those events. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver is starting to build momentum into the summer, and a win wouldn’t be shocking anymore. Berry has been one of NASCAR’s best drivers over the last two weeks, and it may be here to stay.

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SHR takes advantage of rain to score top-three finishes at Loudon

A long rain delay was just what Stewart-Haas Racing needed to give its playoff hopes a boost in New Hampshire. While he was a story off-track due to prospective future teammate Christopher Bell’s silly season spoiler, Chase Briscoe spent most of …

A long rain delay was just what Stewart-Haas Racing needed to give its playoff hopes a boost in New Hampshire.

While he was a story off-track due to prospective future teammate Christopher Bell’s silly season spoiler, Chase Briscoe spent most of Sunday’s race struggling in the midfield. If the race had been called for rain, he’d have been a non-factor with a finish outside of the top 10.

But when the race resumed in the wet, Briscoe’s No. 14 Ford came to life. The Hoosier marched through the field and into the top five. When the leaders left the bottom lane open on the choose before each of the final two restarts, Briscoe was able to roll up to second and restart alongside Bell with a chance to win.

Neither restart worked out, but Briscoe was able to eke out a runner-up finish after a difficult day.

“The rain saved us for sure,” he admitted afterward. “We were terrible in the dry. We knew typically on the road courses, and even the ovals that we’ve ran in the rain, we’ve been pretty good, truthfully. … If you would have told me two hours ago that we would have ran second, I don’t think I would have believed you, but overall great day for us, and definitely needed one to turn the ship around. It’s been a real struggle.”

Briscoe wasn’t the only SHR driver with a shot at the win. Rookie Josh Berry had risen to second before the final two restarts in the No. 4 Ford. With the typical pace disparity between the two lanes, Berry elected to slot in behind Bell on the outside lane for the final restarts.

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He made it clear that a win was on his mind.

“I won’t be able to sleep tonight if I don’t [win],” Berry radioed to his crew.

He didn’t get the restarts he needed to chase down Bell, though. It took the Tennessean too long to clear Briscoe on the first attempt. While he appeared to be closing on Bell, a second caution and overtime served as the knockout punch for his winning hopes.

Berry couldn’t get past Briscoe in overtime and settled for third. The teammates battling allowed Bell to march off to a comfortable win.

“We were debating back and forth on bottom or top [on the final restart],” Berry said. “I really wanted to take the front row, but it was just — it just seemed slick down there, and I just felt like I would be stuck racing probably Chase (Briscoe), who would have been on the outside. Kind of like we ended up…

“Honestly, I think I probably just — I really pushed Christopher out there really hard, and I think that kind of checked my momentum. Then I just got a little loose off of [Turn 2] and got Chase back to my left rear. He kind of drug me back, and we got stuck racing and had to drag race there to the line.”

While neither teammate got to victory lane, they did give their playoff pushes some positive momentum. Briscoe closed to within 25 points of Joey Logano on the playoff cutline, while Berry sits 73 points out with a distant chance if he can hit a solid summer run of form.

Josh Berry linked to new team in the NASCAR Cup Series for 2025

Josh Berry has been linked to a new team in the NASCAR Cup Series for the 2025. Which team is Berry talking to for the 2025 season?

[autotag]Josh Berry[/autotag] has impressed in his rookie season in the NASCAR Cup Series, but he must find a new team as Stewart-Haas Racing shuts down after 2024. Recently, Berry provided a big update on his future plans for the 2025 NASCAR season and sounded optimistic about staying in the Cup Series. Now, the driver of the No. 4 car has been linked to a team for next year.

According to Sports Business Journal’s Adam Stern, Berry has had discussions about joining Wood Brothers Racing for the 2025 NASCAR season. Harrison Burton is “unlikely” to return to the No. 21 Cup car, meaning Berry could slide in with crew chief Rodney Childers. In 2024, Wood Brothers Racing sits 34th in the owner’s points with Burton.

Berry deserves to stay in the Cup Series, but Wood Brothers Racing is a wildcard. Is the equipment solid, or does Burton not fit the NextGen car with limited experience before moving to the Cup Series? If Berry were to join Wood Brothers Racing starting in 2025, that question should be answered as he continues to impress at NASCAR’s top level.

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