NASCAR mechanic slams Wood Brothers with "F" grade for missing out on Rodney Childers - Josh Berry dream team

Two-time NASCAR Craftsman Mechanic of the Year Dave Green recently criticized Wood Brothers Racing for their failure to bring in Rodney Childers to their crew. Currently, Childers serves as the crew chief for Stewart-Haas Racing's #4 team, driven by Josh Berry.

Childers is one of the most successful and seasoned crew chiefs in NASCAR, with nearly 20 years of experience. His most successful campaign was with Kevin Harvick at SHR, where the duo did 37 races together and won a Cup title. In 2024, Josh Berry signed with Stewart-Haas as Harvick's replacement to drive the #4 Ford, and got acquainted with Childers.

With SHR's closure next year, both Berry and Childers were out of a deal for 2025. Recently, the driver signed for Wood Brothers Racing.

Several fans hoped to see Berry reunite with Childers at WBR for the 2025 season, but that's not a possibility anymore. On Wednesday, July 10, Spire Motorsports announced Childers as the new crew chief of their #7 team.

Former Truck Series Mechanic Green criticized WBR for not signing Childers as Josh Berry's crew chief. He wrote on X:

"After listening to Rodney Childers over the past 2 months since the SHR announcement was made, he seemed like he wanted to stay with Josh Berry. The move to Spire Motorsports has to be about the financial offer he received.

"The fact that the Wood brothers didn’t see the value in Rodney to pay him handsomely as he deserves is concerning once again. The smart move would have been to pay Rodney whatever he wanted to keep them together. Now Josh Berry has to start all over and create a relationship with a new crew chief. That decision in itself I’m giving The Wood Brothers a F."

Berry and Childers are known to have a good working relationship. The driver has been vocal about Childers' impact as crew chief and mentor, saying their time together was a great experience. The duo have secured three top-five finishes this season, the latest one coming at New Hampshire last month.

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Rodney Childers shares his thoughts on signing with Spire Motorsports

On Tuesday morning, Spire Motorsports announced Rodney Childers as the crew chief for the #7 Chevrolet team, driven by LaJoie.

Childers approached FOX's Bob Pockrass to announce his move to Spire Motorsports and expressed his reasons behind his decision.

"To sit around for two months and wonder if I was going to get something or not, or maybe end up with nothing. That's not a good place to be in...You want to feel wanted. I want to walk in somewhere and somebody tells me they want to have me right that minute; that I could make a difference. I just don’t want to feel like that I am just another person by any means that is going to take two months to make that decision," Childers said.

With Childers bringing his knowledge and experience to Spire, it will be intriguing to see how LaJoie's season with #7 unfolds.