Stewart-Haas Racing, Josh Berry working on NASCAR Cup Series contract

Stewart-Haas Racing may have their next pillar of a NASCAR Cup Series driver in Josh Berry.

With Kevin Harvick’s looming retirement and Aric Almirola’s clock ticking, many have wondering who would join Chase Briscoe as one of the cornerstones of Stewart-Haas’ team. Evidently, the brain trust have chosen Berry to fill that role, according to a report from Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic.

“Josh Berry and Stewart-Haas Racing are working toward finalizing a contract that would see Berry drive full time for the team in the NASCAR Cup Series beginning in 2024, and a deal is expected to be completed in the coming weeks, multiple sources briefed on the negotiations told The Athletic,” wrote Bianchi. “No contract has been signed yet, per the sources.”

Over the last couple of seasons, Berry has rose to fame due to his success in the Xfinity Series, driving for Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s JR Motorsports, basically handpicked by the legend. However, it’s been his fill-in work for Hendrick Motorsports in the Cup Series that helped him land a ride from Stewart-Haas.

According to Bianchi, Berry will slot into Harvick’s ride, even joining forces with crew chief Rodney Childers.

“Berry is filling the spot on SHR’s Cup roster currently occupied by the retiring Kevin Harvick, where he is expected to be paired with championship-winning crew chief Rodney Childers, who has led Harvick’s team for the past 10 years,” added Bianchi.

That’s pretty big shoes to fill, but Berry has shown he’s built for it, as he filled in for Hendrick’s Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman over the last couple of months while they’ve dealt with injures.

“I’ve learned a lot about myself in the last five weeks,” Berry said, earlier in the Cup Series season, following filling in for Elliott. “It’s definitely different than Xfinity racing, but I feel like I was thrown into a pretty difficult situation, and I think we left all very positive about the experience. I think it just did a lot for my confidence. I’m really grateful for that experience and what it did for me.

“We’ll see what the future holds. I’d love to be racing a Cup car, but right now I’m just trying to stay focused on this (JRM) team. We keep working hard building fast race cars, we’ll win races and I’ll probably be in the Cup Series.”

Well, Josh Berry will get his chance at a NASCAR Cup Series ride in one of the true feel-good stories in the sport. Stewart-Haas Racing is getting a good one in Berry.