The 2024 NASCAR season brought us some fresh faces in the Cup Series, with rookies like Carson Hocevar, who snagged the Rookie of the Year award, and Josh Berry, who made his full-time Cup debut at 34 years old. Berry’s entry into the top series might’ve seemed like a surprise, but his background in stock car racing is anything but that. In fact, Berry is one of the winningest drivers in the CARS Tour and was the 2020 NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series champion.

Before joining the Cup Series, Berry had a successful stint with Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s JR Motorsports. In 2021, he ran 22 Xfinity races for Jr. and won at Martinsville in his rookie season. His 2022 campaign was even better, with three wins, eleven top-5 finishes, and a trip to the Championship 4. By the end of 2023, Tony Stewart signed him to race in the Cup Series for 2024. Fans were expecting big things from Berry, but his first season didn’t exactly meet those lofty expectations. Now, as he gears up for 2025, he’s taking a look back at his rookie year and preparing for what’s next.

Berry reflects on a tumultuous season

Josh Berry joined the prestigious #4 Stewart-Haas car, which Kevin Harvick had piloted for 10 years before retiring in 2023. Along with the car, he got Harvick’s crew chief, Rodney Childers, who has 40 Cup wins and a championship under his belt. With that kind of equipment and support, there were high hopes for Berry in his first year.

Unfortunately, things didn’t go as smoothly as he—or anyone—had hoped. Over the course of the 36-race season, Josh Berry posted two top-5 finishes and four top-10s, finishing 27th in the standings. For a rookie, though, that’s not terrible. His best finish came with a 3rd place at the spring race in Darlington and at New Hampshire. While those were solid results, the 2024 season felt like a stepping stone for Berry as he looked ahead to the next chapter in his career.

In an interview with RACER, Berry reflected on the season: “It’s been an experience. It’s been a challenge, for sure. But it’s something I’m still so grateful to have had the opportunity to race in the Cup Series with that team. It was a lot of fun.”

There were plenty of moments when Berry showed what he’s capable of. He led at least one lap in 10 races and was a factor in a few others. The biggest highlight of his season came at Iowa, where he led 32 laps and was in contention to win. Unfortunately, a pit strategy gamble didn’t work out, and he ended up 7th. “We were competitive in a lot of races: Iowa, New Hampshire, the first Richmond, and even the Coke 600, which got shortened by rain. We had some solid runs there and a few other races like Daytona and Darlington where we showed we could run up front,” Berry said.

That said, Josh Berry had a tough time at Superspeedways and road courses. But for a rookie, it’s all part of the learning curve. He’s already focused on improving for 2025. After Stewart-Haas Racing announced its closure following the 2024 season, Berry found himself another seat and is already gearing up for his second full-time season, this time with the iconic #21 car at Wood Brothers Racing—a ride with serious NASCAR history, driven by legends like David Pearson and Cale Yarborough. It’s a chance for Berry to take everything he learned in 2024 and build on it.

“I’ve already tried on my firesuit for next year, worked on the seat, and just feel a lot more ahead of things than I did last year,” he said. “Team Penske and the Wood Brothers do a great job staying on top of everything. We’re going to work on things early in the offseason, take some time off, but by January, we’ll be ready to hit the ground running.”

Despite the offseason, Josh Berry hasn’t slowed down. He’s still racing, recently taking part in a late model race, and while it wasn’t a typical race for him, it was a reminder of the gritty competitor he is.

Josh Berry’s disappointing Florence run

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The event was jam-packed with Dale Earnhardt Jr. reuniting with his iconic #8 Budweiser car. And Jr., despite having a poor qualification, climbed his way to the P2 position behind race leader Treyten Lapcevich, however owing to mechanical issues, he could not finish the race. Even Berry, for the majority part of the race, ran in the top 5.

Josh Berry, reflecting on his run, said, “Yeah, I mean, the first half of the race went pretty well. I ran hard, probably too hard, but I wanted to keep track position. I wanted to push my car and see how it was and get a good gauge of that for the second half of the race.” But eventually, it all spiraled down when Berry’s crew decided to make some adjustments to compete with the frontrunners. Finally, Berry ended his run in the 25th place.

Dwelling on what unfolded on track he said, “Dale (Earnhardt Jr.) and the #77, with the class of the field for sure, we weren’t quite good enough probably to run with him unless we made our car a good bit better. But, yeah, we put tires on it, made a small adjustment, and went to total junk. I don’t know. I just honestly kind of speechless, not embarrassed, speechless; I just couldn’t get to the back fast enough.”

Let’s hope we see some great runs from Berry in the 2025 season. Do you think his second full Cup Season would differ from his first? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.