Josh Berry remains uncertain about the cause of his wreck on the first lap of the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on Sunday night, which disrupted his race and playoff hopes. Speaking with Matt Weaver of Motorsport, Berry shared his puzzlement over the incident during this pivotal NASCAR Cup Series event.
“It bottomed out five or six times, so I don’t know,”
Josh Berry said after the race.
“I saw a video of it from the one car while they were fixing it. You can see it throwing up smoke. Not really sure what happened there, if we missed something. You can’t drive these things when they’re hitting the track that hard, especially the first lap when you’re not expecting it.”
Berry returned to the race on Lap 121 but finished 38th, 128 laps behind the leader. This crash placed him 16th in the playoff standings, 19 points below the cutoff line, putting him at risk of elimination. To continue advancing to the Round of 12, Berry must deliver strong performances in the upcoming races at Gateway and Bristol or secure a win in one of these events.
Maintaining Optimism Despite Playoff Pressure
Despite the setback, Berry remains hopeful about his chances moving forward. He emphasized the importance of avoiding similar incidents and focusing on consistent results in the remaining races.
“We just can’t have that happen again. It looked like some guys had some bad nights. We’re still in the game. We just got to have two good races.”
Berry secured his first playoff appearance this year after winning at Las Vegas in March, marking a significant milestone in his second full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series. Driving for Wood Brothers Racing, he has demonstrated competitive form with five top-10 finishes during the regular season, including eighth at Richmond and ninth at Daytona.
Josh Berry’s Goals and Future Outlook
At NASCAR’s playoff media day last week, Berry outlined his objectives for the playoff run and expressed confidence in his team’s capabilities.
“Our biggest goal was to definitely make the playoffs and accomplish my first career win, which we were able to do,”
he said.
“We want to advance through the Round of 12 and hopefully the Round of 8, and I think those are very possible if we execute and we do the things we know that we can, but I think just more than anything, we just want to be competitive.”
As the playoff season progresses, Berry’s focus on consistency and execution will be critical in determining whether he can navigate past this challenging moment and continue his playoff journey.
