Josh Berry lets his emotions flow after etching Wood Brothers Racing’s first NASCAR milestone since the team’s inception

Josh Berry made history for Wood Brothers Racing (WBR) after finishing fourth in the Shriners Children's 500 on Sunday, March 9. Not only did he pick up his season's first top-five, but he also got WBR to a major milestone along the way. It was the team's first top-five finish at Phoenix Raceway since they started competing in the Cup Series in 1953.

Wood Brothers Racing is not only one of the oldest and continuously running Cup teams in NASCAR history, but it is also very successful with 100 wins and 120 pole positions. Scoring their first-ever top-five result at the Phoenix Raceway was a major milestone for Josh Berry and the team.

The last time Josh Berry finished in the top five was in the 2024 USA Today 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, where he secured the final podium spot. Speaking after his fourth-place finish at Phoenix, Berry shared that he loves working with the team and feels like it is just one of many more top-five finishes and perhaps even podiums to come in the future.

"I just felt like myself again out there honestly. We've been grinding the last year or so. This group has been great for me. I really enjoy getting to work with these guys and having some great teammates out there like Joey (Logano), Ryan (Blaney) to lean off of and learn from. You know, I felt like this is just the first of many. Really, this is the standard for the #21 team, we felt like we can run up here and we just got some things to iron out but all in all, it was a really solid day," Josh Berry said via Frontstretch (0:42 onwards).

Wood Brothers Racing's milestone moment was highlighted on X by NASCAR's insights page with a post that read:

"Josh Berry started and finished 4th at Phoenix, the first time the Wood Brothers have started and finished a race in the top 5 since Matt DiBenedetto at Kansas in May 2021. This marked the first EVER top 5 finish for the Wood Brothers at Phoenix Raceway."

Berry was also the fourth-highest points scorer at Phoenix behind Christopher Bell, Denny Hamlin, and William Byron.

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Josh Berry shares his thoughts on the tire strategy

NASCAR: Josh Berry at the DAYTONA 500 - Source: Imagn

All the teams had two sets of option tires available in Phoenix for the race compared to six new sets and one scrubbed set of prime tires. There was a lot of talk about the tire strategy throughout the weekend and many felt that the race would be decided by who uses the faster option tire at the right time.

The option tires give more grip, allowing the drivers to push hard, but they degrade quickly. On the other hand, the prime tires offer comparatively less grip but last a lot longer. When Josh Berry was asked to speak about the option tires being better to race with, he explained (1:50 onwards):

"I mean it just opens up the strategy a lot, right? Everybody has been so hard on this track and we saw three amazing finishes this weekend and it just goes to show you that it's not always the track. Sometimes you just got to work and figure out the combination that puts on a good show. From my driver's seat that was a really good race. I hope the fans felt the same."

"It's definitely interesting, there's a lot of strategy involved in that. People might not want the championship to come down to who saved the set of tires the last but ultimately that's racing and we all have the same opportunity to use them," he added.

The fourth-place finish at Phoenix helped Berry to jump up 12 spots in the drivers' standings and he currently sits in 21st place with 73 points to his name.