Dale Jr. blames Penske’s disastrous Martinsville lapse for stripping Josh Berry and Austin Cindric of a ‘decent’ finish

In the latest episode of his Dale Earnhardt Jr. Download podcast, Dale Earnhardt Jr. discussed the unusual battery issues suffered by Josh Berry and the #2 Penske car of Austin Cindric. Dale Jr. blamed Team Penske for their lapse in the preparation and arrangement of spare batteries that ruined both Berry and Cindric's race at Martinsville.

Driving the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang, Josh Berry got a great start at Martinsville, leading 40 laps early in the race. However, after the first pit stop on Lap 73, his car lost power on the backstretch. Although the team restored power, Berry re-entered the race in 38th place, one lap down.

However, the electrical issues did not go away for the Wood Brothers Racing driver, as he required a battery change during his pit stop on lap 86. Josh Berry needed further repairs around Lap 275 when the battery gave up on him again. He ultimately finished 33rd in the race, four laps behind the leaders. Similar electrical issues occurred for Austin Cindric, who had to retire his car on lap 363 of 400.

According to Dale Jr., both cars could have achieved some decent results if they had not suffered from the battery issue.

"Odd thing going on with the Pensky cars having battery issues. So (Josh) Berry is leading, I'm pumped about that, and then he had some contact with Bubba Wallace on pit road, and oddly, the car's battery died out of nowhere. And then I thought, 'Man, that contact shook something loose or whatever.' They were like, 'Nope, not related.' Sure enough, here Comes Austin Cindric, he needs a battery and they ran out of damn batteries," he said (30:00 onwards).

"I'm sure they didn't expect to change four or five batteries during (the race). I mean, they only got so many (batteries) on the truck. I don't know. I mean, maybe they each had a spare battery between the four teams, and they used them all or didn't want to use some… I wonder what was going on, it sucks, because I think that Austin Cindric and and Josh (Berry) both could have had really decent days," he added.

The problems with the battery of his Ford Mustang cost Berry seven places in the drivers’ standings, and he now sits in P19 with 147 points.

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"Not one I expected" - Josh Berry on his first Cup Series victory

In his second full-time NCS season, Josh Berry secured his first victory at the Pennzoil 400, held at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 16. This achievement came in his 53rd career start, marking the 101st win for Wood Brothers Racing, with Berry behind the wheel of the No. 21 Ford Mustang.

Berry started the race in seventh position and was in contention for a win for most of the race. The Pennzoil 400 featured 32 lead changes among 13 different drivers, with Josh Berry taking the lead from Daniel Suarez with 15 laps remaining and pulling away to win by a margin of 1.358 seconds.

After the race, Berry expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to drive a car capable of winning races only in his second full-time Cup Series season.

"It was quite an experience and not one I expected to be faced with that early in my career," Berry shared (via Forbes). "In the end, I feel that everything happens for a reason. I’m happy we put together an opportunity with the No. 21 team. It’s a great opportunity for me, and I feel like I’m in the right place."

Josh Berry will return for more Cup racing action on Sunday, April 6, in the Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway.