Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) has announced that Josh Berry will replace Kevin Harvick as the driver of its No. 4 Ford beginning in 2024. Harvick is retiring at the end of the 2023 season. Berry will not only join a successful team but will also retain Harvick’s talented crew chief, Rodney Childers, as the team’s leader. Harvick and Childers have enjoyed great success together since 2014, including winning the Cup Series championship in their first season. Berry currently competes in the Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports and has achieved five wins since beginning with a part-time schedule in 2021. He advanced to the Championship 4 in his first full-time season in 2022.
Berry’s Career
Berry has already made ten Cup Series starts, including being called on this season to substitute for injured Hendrick Motorsports drivers Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman. He earned a career-best runner-up finish in April at Richmond, while filling in for Elliott in the No. 9 Chevrolet. Berry said, “I can’t imagine a better opportunity for me to get in a car that’s been as successful and iconic as the No. 4. Kevin is a future NASCAR Hall of Famer, and it’s going to be a challenge trying to come after someone so successful. But I know I’m going to have an amazing group of people around me, led by Rodney Childers, to where we can hit the ground running.”
SHR did not address sponsorship for the No. 4 car in 2024, but a team spokesman said that “constructive conversations” were ongoing with current SHR partners associated with the No. 4 as well as with prospective new partners. Greg Zipadelli, SHR’s chief competition officer, said, “Josh Berry has proven himself in the Xfinity Series, and this year showed how quickly he can adapt to the cars and the level of competition in the NASCAR Cup Series. He’ll be a rookie in our race car next year, but he drives like a veteran. He puts in the work to ensure that he’s always ready for the opportunities that come his way, and we’re very happy that his next opportunity is with Stewart-Haas Racing.”
Berry’s journey to NASCAR’s premier series has not been an easy one. While winning six Legend Cars championships as a teenager, Berry also competed in iRacing, and it was during online racing sessions where Berry caught the attention of Dale Earnhardt Jr. Berry joined JRM’s Late Model program in 2010 and soon delivered wins and championships, including the 2017 CARS Late Model Stock Tour title and the 2020 NASCAR Weekly Racing Series championship. That success convinced Earnhardt to give Berry a chance in the Xfinity Series, and he took full advantage of that as well – winning in his 13th series start in April 2021 at Martinsville, the same track on which he secured one of his premier Late Model victories. Berry said, “I wouldn’t change anything about how I got here – it made me who I am. Throughout my teenage years, it was a fight just to keep racing, to get to the next race.”
Harvick believes that Berry’s success and experience in Late Models have provided him with a solid foundation from which to launch a lasting Cup career. “Winning the CARS Late Model Stock Tour championship and the NASCAR Weekly Racing Series championship requires a lot of skill and an equal amount of determination. Josh did both and won a lot of races along the way. That experience allowed him to be fast and successful right off the bat when he got to the Xfinity Series, and when he had his opportunities to race in the Cup Series earlier this year, he again showed speed and an ability to race at the front. I’m very happy for Josh and proud to see him get this opportunity. He’s going to be a really good fit with Rodney and the No. 4 team.”
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