CONCORD, N.C. — The last three years have been a whirlwind for Josh Berry.
Since taking his first trip to victory lane in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway on April 11, 2021, the Tennessee native feels as if he’s been living in fast-forward.
And the pace only continues to quicken.
The 32-year-old will finally realize his dream of racing in the Cup Series full time, starting next season.
Berry was confirmed as Kevin Harvick’s replacement in the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mustang on Wednesday afternoon, as Harvick is retiring at season’s end.
“In three years, I’ve went from racing a late model at Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway to accepting and starting a journey in the Cup Series,” Berry said. “Martinsville was really what changed my future.”
His win at the “Paperclip” — which he accomplished as a part-time driver for JR Motorsports — opened doors to new sponsors and opportunities, generating a snowball effect that propelled his rise through the NASCAR ranks.
But as much of a “pinch me” moment as it was for Berry as he sat alongside team owner Tony Stewart, crew chief Rodney Childers and Harvick while making the announcement, the 2017 CARS Tour champion also felt as if he’d earned it.
“I was a little boy, racing and playing with diecast cars when I was eight years old, watching Cup races on TV and dreaming of making it to that level. Accomplishing that is a very fulfilling moment,” Berry said.
But, he added, “The reality is, heading to the Cup Series, nobody really cares what your path was to get there. I’m proud of how I got here, but the work for 2024 starts today,”
Stewart was superiorly confident in SHR’s choice, despite the fact the team essentially threw all its eggs in Berry’s basket. He admitted the late model stock car phenom was at the top of their very short list for several months before the team reached a final decision.
“There was a risk along with it, but it started with confidence in who we were going after and why we were going after him,” Stewart said.
It was a combination of Berry’s all-around maturity, his ability to manage a race and his chemistry with the team culture at SHR that settled the matter for Stewart.
“I want somebody who knows, not just how to go fast in the car, but how to put the race together and how to know when it’s time to push or not time to push. That’s what’s made Kevin so successful over the years,” Stewart said.
Harvick and Childers have been one of the most consistent driver-crew chief combinations over their 10-year stint together at SHR.
They have earned one championship (2014) and 37 points-paying victories. This season, the No. 4 has also been the highest-performing steed from the SHR stable.
With Berry being more of a veteran driver — having a lifetime of late model experience and about a decade of off-and-on Xfinity Series starts under his belt — Stewart is optimistic the magic Harvick and Childers, a former late model driver himself, have created can be repeated.
“You just don’t see drivers that have that kind of savvy anymore. Josh is one of those guys that we do see that in,” Stewart said. “We know that he knows how to plan for the entire race, not just the lap he’s on.”
It became even more apparent that Berry was the right man for the job when he stepped into the cockpit of the No. 9 and No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports’ Chevrolets as a fill-in driver earlier this season.
Though his deal with SHR was already signed, it didn’t stop Stewart, Childers and Harvick from keeping their eye on Berry’s on-track performance during his eight starts.
The five-time Xfinity Series winner did anything but disappoint, as Berry went on to collect one runner-up result at Richmond (Va.) Raceway and three top-10 finishes in NASCAR’s premier division.
“Jumping in those cars, seats don’t fit, don’t know the people very well, but he went out and was competitive and figured it out,” Harvick said. “It makes me happy to know that everything is going to be in good hands.”