Josh Berry’s victory at Las Vegas caught many off guard. Some have even branded the Wood Brothers Racing driver’s maiden victory as a fluke. But Berry’s former Stewart-Haas Racing teammates, Chase Briscoe and Ryan Preece, know better.
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Berry had finished a poor 27th overall in his first full-time NASCAR Cup season last year. But he had also shown flashes of speed with two top-5 and two top-10 finishes. He was also in contention for a higher spot on a couple of those occasions.
Briscoe had even sensed that Berry’s breakthrough was just around the corner. The #19 car driver for Joe Gibbs Racing, remarked that Berry’s desire to win, and his capabilities as a driver, was never in question.
“Josh was gonna win a race. Like, there was never a question. Even in the 4 car last year, there was weeks where he was up in the mix and it just never ended up playing out where he was able to win the race,” said Briscoe.
“Josh is a great race car driver, the 21 car’s a great car too. I would say it surprised me how early in the season they were able to win… But yeah, I wouldn’t say it surprised me that Josh won by any means,” he added.
Meanwhile, Preece praised the Las Vegas winner and noted that his own journey to the Cup Series mirrors that of Berry. Both had worked on their skills in local modified racing circuits before making their mark in the national series. Preece secured a podium finish in Las Vegas while Berry won.
As for the Wood Brothers driver, his season has been a mixed bag so far. In five starts, he finished one race in the top 5 (at Phoenix) and celebrated a win at Las Vegas. The rest of his races saw him finish way below—37th at Daytona due to a DNF, 25th at Atlanta, and 26th at COTA.
And while the naysayers point at his inconsistency while doubting his credentials, Kenny Wallace addressed a deep-rooted issue in the sport’s fanbase which surfaces when a new winner appears.
Wallace comments on the fickle-minded NASCAR community
While new winners in NASCAR often face their share of criticism on social media, largely due to the disappointment of fans whose favorites didn’t clinch the victory, Kenny Wallace offered a fresh perspective on this phenomenon.
“What happens when someone like that wins is that NASCAR becomes more popular. You’re gonna have some people that are still going, ‘I don’t like NASCAR!’ Cause, ‘My driver wrecked out’, is what they really mean … So, you’re gonna see a lot of good this week from all the fans because somebody new has won,” said Wallace.
Berry, though, has largely been spared from harsh judgments, likely owing to his composed presence on the track. His calmness seems to have softened the usual blows from fans, and his achievements have been seen in a more positive light.
It remains to be seen how he performs as NASCAR prepares to go live from Homestead-Miami this Sunday.
