"Chase your dreams" says bank teller-turned-NASCAR driver
How Josh Berry went from last place to victory within four weeks
At 34, Josh Berry believes a secret to winning — on the racetrack and in life — is focusing on the long game. He doesn’t get too fired up about either a big loss or a big win.
“You’re going to have ups and downs,” he told me. “You have to learn to take each week on its own, not get hung up on a bad result and do your best to move forward. You never know what could come next week. The most important part of it all is consistency. We just try to get in a good routine and prepare ourselves as best we can.”
These are the words of a man who, for a time, worked as a teller at Volunteer State Bank in Hendersonville, Tennessee, northeast of Nashville. As a boy, he grew up washing dishes at Mallard’s restaurant. He remembers his father greeting customers and helping in the kitchen while his mother worked the cash register.
“I lost my mother when I was 13. She passed away in her sleep. She had a heart attack,” Berry said. “It’s been just me and my dad for a number of years. I’d say, now, he’s soaking it all in and being a fan.”
Dad isn’t the only fan watching the driver in car No. 21, a Ford Mustang Dark Horse.
Going from last place to first place within four weeks is notable.
And the path wasn’t obvious:
Berry wrecked his car at Daytona International Speedway in Florida and placed 37this with a DNF — unable to even finish the race after clipping a competitor’s vehicle after it spun out. The wreck on Feb. 16 may have looked minor on TV but, going 190 mph, it damaged the engine.
The next week, he raced in Atlanta and led for 56 laps before getting turned into a wall on his last lap. He still finished 25th on Feb. 23 despite the wreck.
Then Berry went on to Las Vegas on March 16 to earn the first NASCAR Cup Series win in his career after 53 starts. He made national headlines for what the Nashville Tennessean called “an underdog win.”
Note: A reader wrote me to ask what I knew about the victory “at the Vegas NASCAR Cup by 1.358 seconds by Josh Berry of Wood Brothers Racing -- in a Ford.” I confessed: Nothing. But I’d find out. This is how the story unfolded.
‘You know there’s a risk’
So I had to ask: How does a driver keep cool after a wreck and massive loss, then win?
“Being a professional driver, you have to understand the risk. Things can happen. But our cars are extremely safe … It’s just one thing you learn to deal with as a driver. It’s no different than anybody in basketball or football. You know there’s a risk that you can get hurt but, to perform, you can’t let that hold you back.”
By age 9, he was racing Go Karts and then moved into racing online as a teen.
His personal story reminded me of the feature film Gran Turismo, a 2023 drama based on the true story of a working class kid who believed he could go from being a gamer to a professional driver.
Online racing remains part of Berry’s life, especially when faced with unfamiliar racetracks, he said. “It’s still a tremendous way to work on your ability and learn new racetracks and work on your craft as a driver. I’d go on there and run laps and try to acclimate myself.”
Unpredictable events
How Berry ended up where he is today shows how good things happen despite what may appear to be a bad situation. He was among drivers released by Stewart-Haas in 2024, during its “sad demise” wrote ESPN.
And so Berry joined Wood Brothers Racing, a family operation founded in 1950.
He is their only driver.
“We have one team and one driver,” said Len Wood, 68, of Stuart, Virginia, chief operating officer of the company his father co-founded. Eddie Wood, 73, is CEO. An their sister Kim Wood Hall, 64, is chief financial officer. Third generation family members are president, vice president and chief marketing officer.
Len Wood has done engine work and carried tires to the pit for rapid changeovers. They all do, and have done, everything.
Their team competes against big names including Team Penske, Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports that have three or four drivers apiece.
The Berry victory in Vegas was like a family diner competing against Bob Evans.
It was the 101st victory for the Wood Brothers.
Surprisingly, it came as a shock.
Their last victory was in August 2024, won by Harrison Burton at Daytona, after suffering a seven-year drought. In 2017, Ryan Blaney won for the Wood Brothers at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. (Blaney left to drive for Team Penske the next year.)
“We’re a small (but mighty) team,” Len Wood said.
Just $50 and an attitude
Glen Wood, his father, started his team two years after NASCAR was founded.
“Daddy worked in a sawmill and him and a friend of his named Chris Williams each put $25 together and bought a car for $50,” Len Wood said. “They numbered it 50. It was a ‘38 Ford Standard … So somebody else was supposed to drive the car and the guy didn’t show up. It was like, who’s going to drive it? I think daddy said, ‘I’ll just drive it.’ He gets in an accident in a heat race and tears it up. They were about 20 miles from home, near Martinsville, Virginia. They were towing it home with a tow bar and the axle broke and the car fell down and started sparking and they had gas cans and the car caught fire. That race car set in the road burning up.”
Yet Glen Wood was inspired by critics who told him the fire should teach him a lesson or he shouldn't be wasting his money, his son said.
“Well, that kind of lit a fire under him to prove them wrong,” Len Wood said. “They cleaned up that car that was No. 50 for one week. They repainted it and changed the number to No. 16. A few weeks later, daddy wins a race. He was hooked.”
Wood Brothers Racing holds the Guinness World Record for the longest active NASCAR racing team. They are the oldest continuously operating NASCAR Cup Series team with 75 years, always with Ford products; 64 Mercury and 37 Ford.
The latest victory in Vegas makes Berry, who led the final 16 laps, to become only the 20th driver to win a NASCAR Cup Series race with the Wood Brothers. He was the ninth first-time winner in team history, joining founder Glen Wood, 1960; Tiny Lund, 1963; Kyle Petty, 1986; Dale Jarrett, 1991; Elliott Sadler, 2001; Trevor Bayne, 2011; Ryan Blaney, 2017; and Harrison Burton, 2024.
“We don’t let it go to our heads. You have to look at it like there’s one winner each week and 35 losers. You focus how to fix things, do better or keep the streak going,” Len Wood said. “We won our 99th at Pocono in June 2017 and everybody thought 100 was a magic number and it took until 2024. We were over the moon and had party after party. The president of Daytona flew up after the race for a luncheon. Edsel Ford II came out.”
Wood Brothers has an alliance with Team Penske yet drivers still compete against each other, Wood said. “If a Ford wins, that makes (Ford CEO) Jim Farley happy. And that’s better for all of us.”
Farley, who also races competitively, has said the Ford Performance business helps with research and development so that the automaker can produce better vehicles for everyday consumers.
‘Hard work, dedication, exceptional talent’
Because many NASCAR teams are based in the Charlotte, North Carolina area, about two decades ago the Wood Brothers moved operations from Stuart, Virginia. The Ford Performance Racing School is in North Carolina, too.
Berry also lives there now.
It’s difficult to absorb the fact that he started racing for a new team only three months ago.
“I'm just so happy for the entire Wood family and for Josh. We know he's a wheelman,” Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford Performance, said. “… To get a win last weekend in Las Vegas with it still being so early in the season, we couldn't be prouder.”
The Wood Brothers had planned to change drivers in 2024 and, after meeting with a few candidates, felt Berry was the best fitt, Len Wood said. There’s no rhyme or reason to what works, he said. Sometimes you just go with intuition.
“If you went back to the ‘70s, when dad hired David Pearson, he was 38 years old and considered washed up. He won 43 races in seven years,” Len Wood said. “We hired a kid named Trevor Bayne to start the 2011 season, and the 20-year-old kid wins the Daytona 500. It was his second race ever.”
No driver is like another, Wood said.
And team chemistry is of primary importance.
“I would consider Josh a thinking driver. He’s thinking how the results are going to happen. He’s thinking about his moves. I’ve seen ‘devil-may-care’ drivers. Let’s use Curtis Turner from my dad’s days. He’s go to a dirt track wide open and just hang on. It’s like you’re trying to make a name for yourself and in a hurry to do it. For Josh, I don’t see that.”
Finding inspiration in words and solitude
Berry winds down at bedtime with a book, usually an autobiography and often about sports figures. He’s currently reading “Burn the Boats: Toss Plan B Overboard and Unleash Your Full Potential” by Matt Higgins.
This particular book is the story of a high school dropout who ended up an entrepreneur with a billion dollar portfolio, HarperCollins wrote on its website. “From Sun Tzu to Tariq ibn Ziyad, the ancient Israelites to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy—when leaders want to motivate their troops for success, they self-sabotage their own retreat so all energy is directed on a singular objective. They burn their metaphorical boats that sow doubt; it’s win or perish, and their unshakable resolve propels them to victory.”
Focusing on the life you want must be a priority, Berry said.
“For somebody that's a dreamer, I mean, I feel like I was in that position 20-some odd years ago,” he said. “I think the biggest thing is to chase your dreams and don't give up at it, right? If that's what you want to do, stay after it and work hard and you never know. It's going to be hard, going to be difficult. Things are not going to make sense at times. Continue to work hard at it. As long as you love the sport and want to be a part of it, keep after it.”
Former NASCAR driver Elton Sawyer, now NASCAR senior vice president of competition, sent this statement to me:
"Josh Berry's win at Las Vegas is a testament to his hard work, dedication, and exceptional talent … He has proven that perseverance and commitment to the sport can lead to the highest levels of success. This victory not only highlights his remarkable journey but also marks a historic milestone for Wood Brothers Racing, one of the longest-running teams in the sport, as they earn their 101st win. It’s a proud moment that honors both Josh’s individual accomplishment and the enduring legacy of an iconic team. We are incredibly proud of Josh and excited to see him continue to thrive in his NASCAR career."
Earlier this week, Josh Berry and brothers Len and Eddie Wood visited The Henry Ford museum in Dearborn and met with Edsel Ford, great-grandson of the company founder, and his wife Cynthia. Edsel Ford, who grew up in the racing world with the Wood Brothers, has often referred to them as part of the Ford family.
“Josh Berry, welcome to the family!” Cynthia Ford said late Friday. “How wonderful for him to be part of this extraordinary American legacy.”
They all went to the museum to see the Lotus-Ford that represents the first-ever rear engine victory at the Indy 500. Fans from all over the world come to see it, said Matt Anderson, curator of transportation at the museum.
On April 6 at the Darlington Raceway in South Carolina, Berry will drive the No. 21 Ford Mustang painted British Racing Green with a yellow stripe to honor Jim Clark's victory in the 1965 Indianapolis 500.
“The Wood Brothers also played a role in (that) milestone victory. The team had been recognized as one of the most innovative in NASCAR regarding improving the speed of pit stops. Ford invited Wood Brothers Racing to assist the Lotus team during the Indianapolis 500,” RacingAmerica.com wrote.
Tip for someone unfamiliar with NASCAR
For anyone who doesn’t really understand NASCAR, Berry advised a visit to the races.
“Your senses feel the speed of the cars, sound of the cars. When the race cars drive by, the thunder that comes from that is part of it. You can go to pit row and see the race teams preparing the cars and run into a driver or two. Until you've been there and experienced it, I don't think you can have a true appreciation for it.”
Speculation that Berry may win it all
After his NASCAR Cup Series win, Josh Berry is now considered a title contender.
Pat DeCola at NASCAR.com wrote this analysis:
“Team Penske has won three straight Cup Series championships, but its satellite teammate for Wood Brothers Racing, Josh Berry, just locked up his provisional playoff spot before all three of its drivers. Does he have a championship chance?
“Berry’s win Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway marked a significant milestone not just for him, but also for the Wood Bros. The team now has its driver secured in the provisional playoff field just five weeks in … Defending champ Joey Logano, though running well, hasn’t even secured his first top 10. Once again, for good measure because it’s still settling in: Josh Berry is penciled into the 2025 playoffs.
“… Berry has consistently demonstrated his ability to adapt and succeed at higher levels … It’s possible WBR (Wood Brothers Racing) landed a hidden gem set to make an immediate shift to the title picture.”
Note: Josh Berry races in Miami at the Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday, March 23 at 3 p.m. The Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway is scheduled for Sunday, April 6, at 3 p.m. Live coverage airs on FOX Sports 1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
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