● Josh Berry will tackle Kansas Speedway in Kansas City for the second time in his NASCAR Cup Series career this weekend as the field heads to the 1.5-mile oval for Sunday’s AdventHealth 400. Berry’s first Kansas start in the Cup Series came last May with Hendrick Motorsports, filling in for an injured Alex Bowman for the second of three races. In that event, Berry started 29th and finished 25th.
● Berry took on the Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway concrete mile oval last Sunday for the third time in his Cup Series career. He qualified a career-best 12th and finished 14th and will arrive at Kansas second in the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings, 13 points behind leader Carson Hocevar. Berry is 24th in the overall Cup Series standings.
● In his three NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Kansas, the 33-year-old driver has a pair of top-10s in his most recent two starts with JR Motorsports. He started 10th and finished seventh in the September 2022 race and started sixth and finished in the same position last September. Berry has finished inside the top-10 in five of the six stages run in those two races.
● Crew chief Rodney Childers will call the shots atop the pit box at Kansas for the 32nd time in his Cup Series career Sunday. In his previous 31 starts as a crew chief, Childers’ drivers have earned four pole positions, two wins (both with former No. 4 driver Kevin Harvick in 2016 and 2018), 10 top-five finishes, 15 to-10s, and have led 729 laps at the track. His drivers have an average starting position of 10.9 and an average finish of 13.9 with just two DNFs. In Childers’ most recent appearances at Kansas, Harvick drove to 11th-place results in last year’s May and September races.
● Overstock.com adorns Berry’s No. 4 Ford Mustang at Kansas. The partnership amplifies the recent relaunch of Overstock.com, home of crazy good deals that offer quality and style for less. Overstock.com is for the savvy shopper who loves the thrill of the hunt and it includes product categories customers know and love, like patio furniture, home furniture and area rugs, while reintroducing jewelry, watches and health-and-beauty products.
Josh Berry, Driver of the No. 4 Overstock.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse
Kansas is a 1.5-mile track with multiple groves and a lot of opportunity to create speed. How beneficial is it to be able to change lanes and work your way through the field at 1.5-mile tracks when passing has been a challenge in the NextGen car?
“I think having those lane options helps the most when trying to find clean air. The NextGen car is really good in clean air, so being able to move around to find it will give the drivers the chance to race harder and make passes regardless of lane choice. I am looking forward to being able to be aggressive when I need to in order to gain track position.”
You had double-duty in last year’s May weekend at Kansas. How will just having to focus on the Cup Series race this weekend help you?
“I think in the back of my mind, it will be a little easier not having to think about the differences between the NextGen car and the Xfinity car. Ultimately how I prepare for each weekend is still the same – I have my process to get me comfortable and ready each week and that doesn’t change if I am running two races or just the Cup race like I am this weekend. The goal is always to go out there and maximize the day and try to compete for a win, and that is the same anytime I get behind the wheel of a racecar.”
Is there a track you’ve raced on in the Cup Series that is similar to how Kansas races? If so, what can you apply this weekend?
“I think Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway are most similar to how this weekend will be, as far as mile-and-a-halves go, but this one is unique just because of the lane options we get this weekend. Stewart-Haas Racing has had speed at those intermediate tracks and we are still working hard to learn and build our notebook at those tracks, so this weekend will be another chance for me to learn a lot and keep building on what I have already learned this season.”
What are the characteristics of a fast Ford Mustang Dark Horse that will help you be successful this weekend?
“For us on the No. 4 team, we really want to make sure the car has rear grip and stability across the whole run. Obviously, that changes from track to track as far as what we think we need, but when we work in the simulator and look at our data, our focus is on those two characteristics. All of us on the No. 4 team feel like if we can find that and hone in on that, we will have a competitive car that is capable of running up front.”
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