Josh Berry Scores Big Las Vegas Win

Josh Berry celebrates his victory in Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, his first career NASCAR Cup Series victory. (Photo: Justin Sheldon | The Podium Finish)

LAS VEGAS — Perseverance, belief and determination paid off for Josh Berry and his No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang Dark Horse team in only their fifth race together.

Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway was the coronation of the incredibly fast, solid partnership between Berry and the Wood Brothers Racing. While the results may have not backed the effort and potential from the Hendersonville, Tennessee, native and the longtime NASCAR Cup Series team, it was only a matter of time before it all came together.

Coming off a solid fourth place finish at Phoenix Raceway, the 34-year-old racer approached Las Vegas with a quiet but purposeful sense of confidence. Qualifying seventh, Berry drove with the poise and execution warranting measurable results at the 1.5-mile intermediate track.

As Berry kept himself in contention during the 267-lap race, Team Penske affiliate Austin Cindric captured the Stage 1 win, easily asserting himself into the hunt after polesitter Michael McDowell, Joey Logano, Kyle Busch, Tyler Reddick and Alex Bowman led the way.

In the early going, it appeared that Kyle Larson, the defending race winner, had the car to beat when he took the lead from Bubba Wallace on Lap 100. Larson, who described his car as “phenomenal” after finishing fifth in Stage 1, led the balance of Stage 2, losing the lead whenever he led the field to pit road during cautions.

After capturing the Stage 2 win, Larson was in position to capture the race victory. A Lap 196 caution for a backstretch melee involving Wallace, Ryan Blaney, Noah Gragson, Erik Jones, Austin Dillon, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and AJ Allmendinger altered the strategy for several contenders like Larson, William Byron and Ross Chastain.

It was shades of last fall’s Playoff race when Logano and Daniel Suárez emerged as late race leaders before a Lap 244 caution for Gragson’s Turn 2 crash shook up the running order. Suárez’s pit crew kept the No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet toward the front of the field but Berry, with a good stop from his crew, returned toward the front of the pack.

On Lap 252, Berry applied the spurs to his Ford entry to retake the lead, scooting past Suárez and never looked back. Berry, in just his 53rd Cup start, captured an inspirational win by 1.358 seconds over Suárez with Ryan Preece, Byron and Chastain rounding out the top five finishers.

At this same venue over two years ago, Berry was tabbed to drive the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet for an injured Chase Elliott. Logging valuable experience and picking up on the nuances of the Next Gen stock car, Berry, who cut his teeth in late models and iRacing, saw the fruits of his labor pay off in grand fashion.

Josh Berry made his racing dreams come true by winning Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. (Photo: Justin Sheldon | The Podium Finish)

“Man, I just can’t believe it. I’m just so proud of everybody on this team. The car was really solid all day,” Berry said. “We just executed. We had a mishap on pit road and was able to rebound again, and I’m just super proud of these guys.

“I’m just really trying to soak this all in, honestly. I’m trying to take my time with everything and really enjoy this moment.”

It was a historical moment for Berry and the Wood Brothers Racing team with the famed team, with roots in Stuart, Virginia, scored at least one victory in back-to-back seasons for the first time since Kyle Petty in 1986-’87. Petty drove to his first Cup win, coincidentally, at Richmond Fairgrounds in 1986 before capturing the 1987 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The fact that Berry won his first Cup race and did so with a team synonymous with NASCAR’s history was truly the icing on the cake for the new combination and stock car fans of all ages.

A sentimental, feel good win, Berry knows his victory was not possible without support from his current team, Ford Performance and Dale Earnhardt Jr., the man that discovered him in the world of online sim racing.

“I’m just really proud of everybody on this team. This is a great group,” Berry remarked. “They build great race cars and it’s just been a privilege to drive for them. I’m just so really thankful to be here. There are so many people I could thank for this moment, but to be a Cup Series winner is really special.”

Despite coming up a position short on capturing a much needed win, Suárez credited his team with his runner-up result, a finish that provided relief to a difficult start to this season.

“Definitely a little disappointed, but first of all, congratulations to Josh Berry and the No. 21 team,” Suárez said. “They did a great job and they’ve been fast. The No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevy team did everything right. The pit crew did an amazing job with the pit stops. We did everything right with the strategy. Our Chevy was fast, but we just struggled a little bit on the short runs.

“I mentioned to my crew chief – before the last run, I told him that if we’re going to be up front, we’re going to need a better car for the short run. I was having too much contact over there in [Turns] 1 and 2. Unfortunately, I think that’s why we lost the race. We just had a little bit too much contact. I almost wrecked in [Turns] 1 and 2.”

Preece rounded out the podium finishers which could be described as feel good stories in the early part of the 2025 campaign. Like Suárez, the native of Berlin, Connecticut, had solid performances but the results did not support the incredible efforts.

On Sunday afternoon, it was an afternoon that justified the resolve and grit from Preece and his No. 60 RFK Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse team.

“Going into the season the motto is live by the fire, die by the fire and take chances, be aggressive, be on the offense and just put us in position,” Preece said. “Man, I’m happy for Josh. I really liked him when we were teammates and I’m just super proud of everybody on this Consumer Cellular Ford Mustang Dark Horse.

“I just can’t thank Jack Roush, Brad Keselowski, Kroger, Mohawk Northeast, Fifth Third Bank and the list goes on and one – Build Submarines, Castrol, for the opportunity. I’ve been told I’m mid very often by people, and I’m glad I feel Josh said he felt like himself again and I felt the same today.”

Josh Berry raises his arms in victory with his Wood Brothers Racing team after winning Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas. (Photo: Justin Sheldon | The Podium Finish)

The path to Victory Lane was not straightforward for Berry and company, but today’s Cup racing does not offer easy routes to wins. Realizing that there was a loose wheel with the No. 21 car, Berry and crew chief Miles Stanley realized they could address this potential issue to at least preserve a good finish.

Situational awareness paid off for Berry and his hardy team as they captured the trophy, a spot in this year’s NASCAR All-Star Race, and the first Ford Performance points paying Cup race win of this topsy turvy year.1

“I mean, it was obviously disappointing, but thankfully the wheel stayed on and we were able to make it to pit road before Miles was gonna get a vacation,” Berry quipped. “It just broke up the race. There was a lot of strategy going on and we were able to capitalize on it.

“We had a great battle with Joey and was hoping it would go green, but we got the caution and this pit crew rebounded and they dug deep at the end and had a great stop and we fought for the win.”

Stage 1 Top 10 Results

1. Austin Cindric
2. Alex Bowman
3. Chase Elliott
4. Bubba Wallace
5. Kyle Larson
6. AJ Allmendinger
7. Joey Logano
8. Josh Berry
9. Carson Hocevar
10. Christopher Bell

Stage 2 Top 10 Results

1. Kyle Larson
2. William Byron
3. Ross Chastain
4. Bubba Wallace
5. Carson Hocevar
6. Ryan Blaney
7. Daniel Suárez
8. Josh Berry
9. Tyler Reddick
10. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Race Results