Josh Berry

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Not to be confused with Josh Berry (comedian).
Josh Berry
Josh berry (51307763566).jpg
Berry racing in the Xfinity Series at Atlanta in 2021
BornJoshua Berry
(1990-10-22) October 22, 1990 (age 31)
Hendersonville, Tennessee
Achievements2017 CARS Tour Late Model Stock champion
2019 ValleyStar Credit Union 300 winner
2020 NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series champion
NASCAR Cup Series career
2 races run over 1 year
2021 position60th
Best finish60th (2021)
First race2021 Drydene 400 (Dover)
Last race2021 FireKeepers Casino 400 (Michigan)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 0 0
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
29 races run over 5 years
Car no., teamNo. 8 (JR Motorsports)
2021 position17th
Best finish17th (2021)
First race2014 U.S. Cellular 250 (Iowa)
Last race2021 Dead On Tools 250 (Martinsville)
First win2021 Cook Out 250 (Martinsville)
Last win2021 Alsco Uniforms 302 (Las Vegas)
Wins Top tens Poles
2 14 0
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
11 races run over 2 years
2016 position92nd
Best finish92nd (2016)
First race2016 American Ethanol E15 225 (Chicagoland)
Last race2021 United Rentals 200 (Martinsville)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 1 0
Statistics current as of December 26, 2021.

Joshua Berry (born October 22, 1990) is an American professional stock car racing driver who competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro for JR Motorsports. Berry has also competed for JRM in late model racing in both the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series (in which he won its 2020 national championship) and the CARS Tour, and also works as a driver coach for the team.[1]

Racing career[]

Early career and late model racing[]

Berry met his future car owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2008 when competing in a number of iRacing events together. At the time, he was Legends car racing at his home track of Fairgrounds Speedway in Nashville while also attending Volunteer State Community College and working as a bank teller to fund his racing career. Earnhardt Jr. then signed Berry to his JR Motorsports team in 2010 to compete in late model racing.[2]

At the 2015 Denny Hamlin Short Track Showdown, Berry spun Lee Pulliam while racing him and Timothy Peters for the lead on the final lap; Berry was moved down to 17th in the running order and drew criticism from Pulliam, who called Berry "the biggest joke in racing."[3] After being spun by Bobby McCarty in CARS Tour at Motor Mile Speedway in 2019 and Ace Speedway in 2020, both times when Berry was leading the race, Berry intentionally wrecked McCarty later in the Ace Speedway race, resulting in a one-race suspension.[4] Berry ditched a planned CARS schedule and instead focused on the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series, winning 24 races en route to a national championship.[5]

NASCAR and ARCA[]

2014–2020[]

Berry's first NASCAR Xfinity Series race came at Iowa Speedway, driving the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro for JR Motorsports. He started tenth and finished twelfth, finishing on the lead lap.[6] He returned to the 5 car for the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, again logging a lead-lap finish in 25th. He finished his debut season 50th in points. He returned to JR Motorsports for one race in 2015, finishing seventh at Richmond International Raceway. In 2016, his first race of the season was at Iowa, where he finished ninth in the No. 88 for JR Motorsports. He returned to that car in the first race of the Xfinity Series Chase, at Kentucky Speedway and ended up finishing 13th.[7] Berry also made one start for Obaika Racing, finishing 27th at Darlington Raceway.[8] Berry also debuted in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series during the 2016 season, driving the No. 71 Contreras Motorsports truck to a 13th-place finish at Chicagoland Speedway.

In 2017, Berry made his first Xfinity Series start of the season, attempting the Kansas race for newly-formed NextGen Motorsports, driving their No. 55 Toyota.[9] After qualifying 33rd, he finished 34th after suffering an engine failure on lap 182.[10]

In 2018, Berry made his debut in the ARCA Racing Series, driving for Chad Bryant Racing in their No. 22 Ford at Salem Speedway in April of that year, finishing 4th. In 2019, he drove for Visconti Motorsports and finished 3rd in their No. 74 car in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East race at New Hampshire in September, which was his first start in that series. These were his only starts in NASCAR or ARCA in both of these years.

2021[]

Berry in the No. 02 truck for Young's Motorsports at Atlanta in 2021
Berry (No. 8) racing Daniel Hemric (No. 18) and Jeb Burton (No. 10) at Atlanta in March 2021

On October 22, 2020, JR Motorsports announced that it had scheduled Berry to drive its No. 8 car for 12 races in the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series season.[11] At Phoenix Raceway, Berry was turned by Santino Ferrucci, prompting him to give Ferrucci double middle fingers as he drove by.[12] He recorded his first Xfinity win at Martinsville upon passing Ty Gibbs for the lead with 28 laps remaining; Berry was the fifth driver to win his maiden race in the series at Martinsville alongside Sam Ard (1982), Brett Bodine (1985), Brad Teague (1987) and Jeff Burton (1990).[13]

In March, Berry returned to the Truck Series for the first time since 2016. He substituted for Kris Wright in the No. 02 for Young's Motorsports after Wright tested positive for COVID-19.[14]

In May, Berry made his NASCAR Cup Series debut in the Drydene 400 at Dover International Speedway, substituting for Justin Haley in the Spire Motorsports No. 77 car after Haley was sidelined by COVID-19 protocols,[15] marking the second time that Berry was called on to fill in for a driver that had to miss a race because of COVID-19. He also drove in his second ARCA Menards Series East (formerly NASCAR K&N Pro Series East) race that weekend in the No. 41 for Cook-Finley Racing, which meant that he did triple duty that weekend at Dover. On May 26, it was announced that Berry would get to compete in the Xfinity Series race at Mid-Ohio road course in the No. 31 for Jordan Anderson Racing. Miguel Paludo was driving Berry's normal car, the No. 8 for JR Motorsports, in this race.[16]

Another Truck return came in June in the No. 25 of Rackley WAR for three races at Texas, Nashville, and Pocono after the departure of Timothy Peters.[17] A month later, he rejoined JRM for the Xfinity race at Loudon in the No. 1 after Michael Annett suffered a leg injury.[18]

On August 16, Berry was confirmed to drive the No. 8 for JR Motorsports full time in 2022.[19] Later in the week, he filled in for Spire's other Cup driver Corey LaJoie at Michigan when LaJoie was not allowed to compete due to COVID-19 protocols.[20] When Annett was re-injured in September, Berry once again took over as replacement at Bristol and Las Vegas, and he won the latter after passing teammate Justin Allgaier with under 20 laps to go.[21]

Personal life[]

Berry worked as a bank teller before his racing career provided a steady income.[22] He is a graduate of Volunteer State Community College.[2] Berry is a former classmate of IndyCar champion Josef Newgarden in the 7th and 8th grades.[23]

Motorsports career results[]

NASCAR[]

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Cup Series[]

NASCAR Cup Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 NCSC Pts Ref
2021 Spire Motorsports 77 Chevy DAY DAY HOM LVS PHO ATL BRI MAR RCH TAL KAN DAR DOV
30 		COA CLT SON NSH POC POC ROA ATL NHA GLN IND 60th 01 [24]
7 MCH
26 		DAY DAR RCH BRI LVS TAL CLT TEX KAN MAR PHO

Xfinity Series[]

NASCAR Xfinity Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 NXSC Pts Ref
2014 JR Motorsports 5 Chevy DAY PHO LVS BRI CAL TEX DAR RCH TAL IOW CLT DOV MCH ROA KEN DAY NHA CHI IND IOW
12 		GLN MOH BRI ATL RCH CHI KEN DOV KAN CLT TEX PHO HOM
25 		50th 51 [25]
2015 88 DAY ATL LVS PHO CAL TEX BRI RCH TAL IOW CLT DOV MCH CHI DAY KEN NHA IND IOW GLN MOH BRI ROA DAR RCH
7 		CHI KEN DOV CLT KAN TEX PHO HOM 60th 37 [26]
2016 DAY ATL LVS PHO CAL TEX BRI RCH TAL DOV CLT POC MCH IOW DAY KEN NHA IND IOW
9 		GLN MOH BRI ROA KEN
13 		DOV CLT KAN TEX PHO HOM 41st 74 [27]
Obaika Racing 97 Chevy DAR
27 		RCH CHI
2017 NextGen Motorsports 55 Toyota DAY ATL LVS PHO CAL TEX BRI RCH TAL CLT DOV POC MCH IOW DAY KEN NHA IND IOW GLN MOH BRI ROA DAR RCH CHI KEN DOV CLT KAN
34 		TEX PHO HOM 80th 3 [28]
2021 JR Motorsports 8 Chevy DAY
27 		DAY HOM
10 		LVS
7 		PHO
36 		ATL
38 		MAR
1 		TAL
31 		DAR
2 		DOV
2 		COA CLT
32 		TEX
19 		NSH
4 		17th 540 [29]
Jordan Anderson Racing 31 Chevy MOH
8 		POC
9 		ROA ATL
23 		RCH
24 		MAR
28 		PHO
JR Motorsports 1 Chevy NHA
8 		GLN IND MCH
4 		DAY DAR BRI
35 		LVS
1 		TAL
9 		CLT TEX KAN

Camping World Truck Series[]

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 NCWTC Pts Ref
2016 Contreras Motorsports 71 Chevy DAY ATL MAR KAN DOV CLT TEX IOW GTW KEN ELD POC BRI MCH MSP CHI
13 		NHA LVS TAL MAR TEX PHO HOM 92nd 01 [30]
2021 Young's Motorsports 02 Chevy DAY DAY LVS ATL
22 		BRI RCH KAN DAR COA CLT -* 01* [31]
Rackley WAR 25 Chevy TEX
10 		NSH
19 		POC
11 		KNX
28 		GLN
11 		GTW
15 		DAR
17 		BRI
11 		LVS TAL MAR
28 		PHO

ARCA Menards Series East[]

ARCA Menards Series East results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 AMSEC Pts Ref
2014 Darin Odle 45 Ford NSM DAY BRI GRE
24 		RCH
17 		IOW BGS FFL LGY NHA COL IOW GLN VIR GRE DOV 47th 47 [32]
2019 Visconti Motorsports 74 Chevy NSM BRI SBO SBO MEM NHA IOW GLN BRI NHA
3 		DOV 31st 41 [33]
2021 Cook-Finley Racing 41 Chevy NSM FIF NSV DOV
2 		SMP IOW MLW BRI -* -* [34]

ARCA Racing Series[]

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

ARCA Racing Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 ARSC Pts Ref
2018 Chad Bryant Racing 22 Ford DAY NSH SLM
4 		TAL TOL CLT POC MCH CHI IOW ELK ISF BLN DSF SLM IRP KAN 74th 215 [35]

* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points

References[]

  1. ^ "255 - Amy Earnhardt: Maximum Security". Player FM. Dirty Mo Media. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
  2. ^ a b Organ, Mike (May 13, 2021). "How Josh Berry went from Hendersonville bank teller to driving for Dale Earnhardt Jr. to making NASCAR Cup debut". The Tennessean. USA Today. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  3. ^ Long, Dustin (April 23, 2015). "Timothy Peters wins Denny Hamlin Short Track Showdown after last-lap fireworks". NBC Sports. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  4. ^ Weaver, Matt (June 9, 2020). "CARS Tour suspends Josh Berry for intentionally crashing Bobby McCarty". Short Track Scene. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
  5. ^ Marquis, Andy (October 18, 2020). "Josh Berry Lays Claim to National Championship with SNMP Sweep". Short Track Scene. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  6. ^ "2014 U.S. Cellular 250 - Racing-Reference.info". racing-reference.info. Retrieved 2016-07-31.
  7. ^ "Berry ready to make most of opportunity at Iowa". Retrieved 2016-07-31.
  8. ^ "2016 VFW Sport Clips Help A Hero 200 - Racing-Reference.info". racing-reference.info. Retrieved 2016-09-17.
  9. ^ "NextGen & March Networks Support Disaster Relief". Speed Sport. October 20, 2017. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
  10. ^ "2017 Kansas Lottery 300". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
  11. ^ Rutherford, Kevin (October 22, 2020). "Josh Berry Running Part Time for JR Motorsports in Xfinity in 2021". Frontstretch. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
  12. ^ Estrada, Chris (March 20, 2021). "Josh Berry aims to keep emotions in check, focus on winning". NBC Sports. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  13. ^ "Josh Berry wins at Martinsville for 1st career Xfinity victory". ESPN.com. ESPN. AP. April 11, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  14. ^ Estrada, Chris (March 19, 2021). "Truck Series driver Kris Wright tests positive for COVID-19". NBC Sports. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  15. ^ "Justin Haley out at Dover due to COVID-19 protocols; Josh Berry, Zane Smith to sub". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. May 14, 2021.
  16. ^ "Josh Berry Running for Jordan Anderson Racing at Mid-Ohio". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  17. ^ Walls, Dave (June 4, 2021). "Timothy Peters leaves Rackley WAR NASCAR Trucks team; Josh Berry steps in". WSET-TV. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
  18. ^ Utter, Jim (July 12, 2021). "Michael Annett to have surgery, could miss Xfinity playoffs". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  19. ^ Estrada, Chris (August 16, 2021). "Josh Berry lands full-time 2022 Xfinity ride with JR Motorsports". NBC Sports. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  20. ^ "Corey LaJoie out at Michigan due to COVID-19 protocols; Josh Berry to sub". NASCAR. August 19, 2021. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  21. ^ "Josh Berry beats teammate Allgaier in JRM sweep at Las Vegas". USA Today. AP. September 25, 2021. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  22. ^ "320 - Chase Briscoe & Josh Berry: Defying the Odds". Radio.com. Dirty Mo Media. October 20, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  23. ^ "The Dale Jr. Download". Dirty Mo Media. Retrieved 2021-07-31.
  24. ^ "Josh Berry – 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  25. ^ "Josh Berry – 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  26. ^ "Josh Berry – 2015 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  27. ^ "Josh Berry – 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  28. ^ "Josh Berry – 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  29. ^ "Josh Berry – 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  30. ^ "Josh Berry – 2016 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved September 17, 2016.
  31. ^ "Josh Berry – 2021 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
  32. ^ "Josh Berry – 2014 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  33. ^ "Josh Berry – 2019 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  34. ^ "Josh Berry – 2021 ARCA Menards Series East Results". Racing Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  35. ^ "Josh Berry – 2018 ARCA Racing Series Results". Racing Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 22, 2018.

External links[]

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