Tony Stewart has announced the replacement of retiring Kevin Harvick for the 2023 season. JRM’s Xfinity Series driver Josh Berry will drive the No:4 Ford Mustang from the 2024 season. Berry’s impressive last two seasons in the Xfinity series and the part-time eight-race stint this season as Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman’s replacement helped him to land the seat.
Kevin Harvick is among the most decorated drivers in Stewart Haas Racing’s history, and replacing him with the right driver has been a priority for the team manager since the start of 2023. The uncertainty over Aric Almirola’s extension also created issues as they were deprived of the opportunity to replace him with a prodigy. If the No:10 driver retires, they will not have a veteran driver, a valuable asset.
This factor played a key role in the team landing Berry, who though he has limited experience at the Cup level, has gone through all the highs and lows in the lower divisions. He also has the immense life experience necessary for a championship-caliber driver. SHR co-owner Tony Stewart while talking about the singing, pointed out that Berry’s experience and maturity was a factor in the signing. JRM owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. pointed out that the expertise makes Berry a better hire than a rookie.
“Kevin Harvick has obviously set a very high bar, but Josh brings maturity, experience, and, above all, a winning record to Stewart-Haas Racing, He is the right driver, at the right time, for the No. 4 team and our organization,” said Stewart, who co-owns SHR with Gene Haas.
“Whereas it’s incredible and a great opportunity to sign a young driver that will develop into a champion, I believe you get to skip those years of development with a guy like Josh, and you get right into working on the championship part and winning races because he’s there mentally, professionally and in talent,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. said.
In case you missed it: Did Josh Berry use his father’s money to buy Kevin Harvick’s NASCAR Cup ride?
What Josh Berry had to say about signing for SHR?
Berry has worked very hard to make it to the top of the Stock car racing scene. He will be 33 when he makes his full-time debut, while the drivers such as Kyle Busch and Joey Logano, who are in their lower thirties, have won the Cup title twice. Since he had a very limited family fortune to support the racing ventures, he worked as a Bank teller until he could make enough income from racing to continue his passion.
So Josh Berry doesn’t see his SHR opportunity as a lucky chance. Instead, he believes it is the opportunity he has been preparing for. He pointed out that his struggles in the early part of his career made him who he was, and he isn’t willing to trade it for anything.
Josh Berry and I discuss his path to landing a Cup ride, what it will take to become a Cup champion and what he expects out of Kevin Harvick the broadcaster. pic.twitter.com/UhIWrDC9lh
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) June 21, 2023“I’m really proud of how I’ve gotten to this point and earned this opportunity. I don’t like to use the word luck. It’s also been about preparation meeting opportunity. 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,” Berry said.
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