Berry Boards His Way to Phoenix with Vegas Win

Photo Credit to JR Motorsports via Twitter

NASCAR

Josh Berry Takes Vegas Win, Championship 4 Berth After Bouncing off Wall

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – For the second year in a row, Josh Berry wheels an Xfinity car to Las Vegas victory lane. Unlike last year’s part-time substitute role though, Berry is now locked into the Championship 4. Berry’s drive to the Vegas win was definitely a show, as the 8 made wall contact while making the winning pass.

Both Stages were ran with few issues, Ty Gibbs and Noah Gragson split both caution-free segments. Gibbs was the winner of the March Las Vegas race, while hometown star Gragson was a close runner-up that day. Both drivers were the class of the field early, as Gragson was going for his first win on his home turf.

Josh Berry took the lead for the first time early in the final Stage. After hounding his teammate for several laps, Noah Gragson finally retook the top spot and appeared on rails for victory.

Gragson would only lose the lead on a late restart, where Landon Cassill stayed out on old tires. AJ Allmendinger made slight contact with the 10, sending him up into the path of Gragson. This exchange set Gragson back in the closing laps, while Josh Berry quickly got to Allmendinger’s outside. Off of turn four, Berry got squeezed into the wall but still managed to get by the 16.

From this point on, Berry just managed his lead while Gragson rallied all the way to second. In what turned out to be a 1-2-3 day for JR Motorsports with Justin Allgaier, Berry goes from outside to locked into Phoenix. The 31-year-old late model racer from Tennessee now has a one in four shot at the Xfinity Series championship.

“I was a little bit tight off of four the while time, he left me a lane but nothing extra,” Berry explained. “I wasn’t letting off. That was for a trip to Phoenix. I was willing to hit the wall and have a flat tire. These guys have done such a great job all year. We’ve had a tough couple weeks or months, but we knew that we could do this if we were at our best.”

“Today was funny, the car took off really well for 20 or 30 laps and then we built tight. Just had a caution with 30 or so to go and was able to wrestle the lead away from those guys and build enough gap to keep it. I’m just speechless.”

“I can’t even really put all of this into words. When we sat down at the beginning of this year, and knew this was going to be an opportunity for me, my goal was to make the Championship 4. I think that makes a successful year. I can’t believe we came here, locked ourselves in, and can now breathe a sigh of relief the next few weeks. I’m just so excited.”

Behind the JR Motorsports big three were: Ty Gibbs, Trevor Bayne, Austin Hill, Sam Mayer, Daniel Hemric, Brandon Jones, and Anthony Alfredo. The lone Playoff contender not in the top-10 was AJ Allmendinger in 22nd. The 16 had to pit late from the top-five with two loose wheels. Also impressing in her Xfinity Series debut was Hailie Deegan. The 21-year-old finished 13th in the No. 07 Ford for SS-Green Light Racing.

Berry entered Las Vegas fifth on the Playoff grid, and is now locked into the Championship 4 with the win. Berry’s triumph shifts everyone down one spot in the standings with two races left in the Round of 8.

Race two of this Playoff round will be next Saturday from Homestead-Miami Speedway. Coverage begins at 4:30 p.m. ET on USA Network, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. The Contender Boats 300 can lock one of the other seven Playoff drivers into Phoenix with a win. Can JRM remain the top dog on intermediates and send another driver to the Championship 4?

Written by Peter Stratta

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Photo Credit to JR Motorsports via Twitter