Pit Stop Gamble Leads To Josh Berry’s Career-Best Finish

Josh Berry made his fourth NASCAR Cup Series start of the 2023 season at Richmond Raceway on April 2 while replacing an injured Chase Elliott. He dealt with issues early, but he delivered a career-best finish after a late gamble.

Berry’s team made a bold move during the final stage. All of the leaders headed down pit road with around 50 laps remaining, but Berry stayed out along with Michael McDowell and Todd Gilliland. The members of this trio all lost spots to William Byron and Martin Truex Jr., but they remained in the top 10 until Lap 372 when Tyler Reddick spun and brought out the caution.

With the caution flag out once again, Berry was able to head down pit road for fresh tires and remain on the lead lap. His pit crew then turned in a standout stop that helped him gain two spots.

Berry lined up on the front row next to Kyle Larson with 20 laps remaining, and then he kept pace next to his Hendrick Motorsports teammate as the green flag waved. However, the caution waved again as Christopher Bell sent William Byron spinning.

Berry lined up on the front row once again for the restart on Lap 387, but he wasn’t able to stick with the No. 5. Larson jumped to the lead and kept the advantage en route to his first win of the season. Berry kept his spot and crossed the finish line second overall.

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Berry Recovered From an Earlier Incident

Staying out on the track while other drivers headed down pit road was a gamble for Berry and interim crew chief Tom Gray, but it does not tell the full tale of the Toyota Owners 400.

Berry started 30th overall after inclement weather washed out practice and qualifying. He continued to race in the back half of the field during the first stage and into the second. An incident then dropped him further back into the pack.

Berry suddenly spun on Lap 95 of the event at Richmond Raceway, which brought out the caution. Replay then showed that Ryan Blaney had hit Berry from behind and sent him spinning while battling for 25th.

Berry didn’t sustain any major damage after the contact from Blaney and the spin. However, he lost multiple positions and had to head down pit road for fresh tires.

“Man, this is really cool,” Berry told FOX Sports’ Regan Smith after the race. “I’ve got to give all the credit to this NAPA team… Man, they made some great calls. When we got some clean track, we weren’t running bad lap times.

“I’m so glad they tried something different there at the end to just get us up front because I felt like we were decent the whole time. Just getting in cleaner air there — we were a little too free to run with Kyle — but man, what a huge day.”

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Berry Has Multiple Top-10 Finishes in the No. 9

Berry’s first start in the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro took place at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He had mere hours to prepare, and he struggled with throttle issues before finishing 29th overall. However, Hendrick Motorsports continued to express optimism about the Tennessee native.

Berry’s second start of the season took place the following week at Phoenix Raceway. He started 17th overall and keep the No. 9 Chevrolet clean before crossing the finish line 10th overall in what was a career-best finish in the Cup Series.

The trip to Atlanta Motor Speedway only led to an 18th-place finish for Berry and the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports team, but he continued to gain experience while facing off with the best drivers in the Cup Series. This experience, as well as the late gamble, paid off as Berry delivered the best finish of his career.

“I think that every race gets his confidence up,” Jeff Gordon said about Berry during a post-race press conference. “You go into a new track, different track every time, and it’s, ‘Ok, what’s the car going to be like this weekend? What’s it going to be like this weekend?’ Then you throw Atlanta in on him there too, and that’s a pretty unique one.”

Gordon continued and explained that the cars are completely different between the Xfinity Series and Cup Series with the tires, the sidewall, the shifters, and multiple other factors. He added that he loves Berry’s approach to the variety of tracks and that it is paying off with results now.

 

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