Rookie Stewart Haas Racing driver, Josh Berry, suffered his second DNF finish of the season during the Cup Series race at Gateway Park. With SHR exiting NASCAR, Berry is looking to finish the season on a high to find a new ride for 2025. However, it seems like the #4 SHR team will have an uphill climb given their recent troubles with race equipment.

Before last weekend’s race, Josh Berry was successful in churning out two consecutive top-10 results. This also included his best finish of P3 at Darlington Raceway. However, a DNF finish at Gateway washed out any hopes for him to continue his good running streak, which now leads to more frustration for the driver and the #4 team.

Josh Berry unimpressed by the #4 Ford car at Gateway

One of the usual suspects for a breakdown of cars at WWT Raceway is the blown-out brake rotors. The long straightway sees the driver brake hard, going into the turns, and then cooling the brakes back on the straightway. This sudden switch in temperature leads to the snapping of the brake rotors. A total of four race cars suffered equipment failure in last year’s race at the venue after blowing up their brake rotors.

But Berry had a rather freak accident during his last weekend’s run. It’s still unsure if it was a flat tire or some other issue that derailed his run to grab some valuable points. However, the driver wasn’t pleased with the ordeal and lashed out his frustration via the radio. His spotter, Eddie D’Hondt, seeing his driver crash, stated this on the radio: “Oh, we just blew a tire.” In the highlight video uploaded on NASCAR’s YouTube Channel, Berry could be heard replying, “Piece of s**t race car.” His utter frustration over the situation was pretty evident.

After the crash, the driver also explained that the brake rotors on his car were intact. Thus hinting at another big issue with his ride that led to his disappointing end. “I really don’t know what happened. Obviously, with what our past has been with rotors here it kinda makes you think that. I’d been over the rotors, and it looked like they were still on it, so maybe it’s either that or the tires .. Either a cut tire from the rotor exploding or we ran something over.”

It is indeed a tough call for the teams to pick Berry over the likes of Noah Gragson or Chase Briscoe. Fortunately, though, the SHR driver has the support and backing of prominent NASCAR personalities like Dale Earnhardt Jr and his crew chief, Rodney Childers.

Dale Jr stands firm behind Berry, amid SHR’s closure

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It is no secret that Dale Jr holds high regard for Josh Berry. He hired him to the Xfinity Series team from late-model racing in 2010. After a long grind, Berry finally secured his spot in the Cup Series racing at SHR, replacing Kevin Harvick in the iconic #5 seat. However, with SHR deciding to shut down its NASCAR operation, the driver is now looking for a new home for the 2025 season and beyond.

With the silly season starting to heat up with charter sales, Dale Jr backed his former driver, stating that he would be a perfect fit for the teams that are looking to hire new faces. “I’m watching all of the SHR news and the silly season news, even that all this is affecting. And I’m really paying the most attention to what happens to Josh Berry and where he may end up. I absolutely think he belongs in Cup. And I think all of teams that are either having new opportunities with new charters and drivers to put in those cars should be considering Josh as the driver to hire,” Dale Earnhardt Jr said via Dale Jr Download podcast show.

There’s even a possibility of veteran crew chief Rodney Childers being available in the package deal with Berry. Considering all things, the duo could attract good offers as more drama unfolds. But, they have got to keep their stock up and start racking up good results on the racetrack from this week onwards.