Josh Berry Prioritizes Execution Over Raw Pace for 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Campaign

The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season presented a dual narrative for driver Josh Berry and the venerable Wood Brothers Racing No. 21 team. While the season was marked by a significant achievement – Berry’s maiden Cup Series victory – it was also punctuated by frustrating stretches where promising performances failed to translate into desired results, leaving the team with a sense of "what could have been."

A stark illustration of this inconsistency emerged during the playoff stretch. Berry and the No. 21 Ford demonstrated remarkable speed, placing them among the fastest competitors in the field during the initial playoff round. However, a subsequent string of three consecutive last-place finishes ultimately led to an early playoff elimination. The Southern 500, the opening race of the playoffs, saw Berry start from the third position, only to spin and make contact with the wall on the very first lap. The following week at Gateway, an incident involving Chase Elliott resulted in Berry being spun while running near the front. The ill-fated playoff run concluded with a tire rubber build-up issue causing a fire during the Bristol Night Race.

Despite these setbacks, the 2025 season undeniably showcased the potential of the partnership between Berry and the Wood Brothers. Securing a win in their inaugural year together provides a solid foundation for future success. "I’m excited for it," Berry stated during a media availability on Wednesday. "I agree that there were a lot of positives in our performance last year. There were plenty of races where the finish didn’t indicate the type of day we had, so that’s been our focus – looking through some of that stuff and trying to figure out what we could do better and put ourselves in better positions to get the finishes we deserve."

The driver emphasized the benefit of continuity heading into the 2026 season. "This is really the first year since I’ve been in Cup or Xfinity that I’ve really had the same group two years in a row. That made the off-season feel different since I’ve already been working with these guys and knowing them, and not establishing that communication, so I think that should be a positive as well and we’re ready to get to the Clash."

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With the inherent speed of the Team Penske-provided equipment and the team’s demonstrated potential, Berry’s strategic outlook for 2026 centers on refinement and execution rather than the pursuit of outright speed. This focus stems directly from the challenges that hampered their playoff contention and potentially cost them additional victories.

"I think we sat down early in the offseason and kind of broke it down and looked at each race," Berry explained. "It’s a number of things. It’s issues on pit road. There were a couple of speeding penalties over the course of the year. Obviously, that stuff you have to clean up. Issues on pit road with penalties. Mechanical problems. We had a couple of those along the way."

Berry elaborated on the critical areas for improvement, highlighting decision-making as a key factor. "I think the biggest thing is just looking at the decision-making towards getting to these races maybe is the biggest thing. I think you’re better off to take a top 10 than maybe put yourself in a bad spot that could result in it, but, honestly, the key to that is not something that I don’t think any of us really know. Obviously, you’ve got to go out and race hard and fight for every spot, and just kind of learning with experience and trying to make sure we get the finishes we deserve. But the biggest thing, I think, is just limiting your mistakes. Like I said, we had a handful of those over the course of the year and hopefully we can clean those up and get the finishes we should."

The imperative for enhanced consistency is amplified by a shift in the playoff format for the upcoming season. Unlike previous years where a single victory could guarantee a playoff berth, the 2026 Chase for the Championship will be determined by finishing within the top 16 in driver points by the conclusion of the regular season. This revised structure places a premium on consistent high-level performances week in and week out.

Berry acknowledged the change in the playoff landscape, stating, "I think that obviously it’s a different format, but first time winners and first wins in this sport have always been something that are really popular and make for great stories. There’s no reason that the playoff format changing should change the feeling that you get from when you have a first-time winner or an underdog story type of deal – kind of like we were last year. Now it doesn’t include an automatic berth into the playoffs or the Chase, but it’s still a great story. There are going to be a lot of storylines evolve throughout the season and as that changes, relying on consistency a little bit more is probably going to put the best guys in the Chase at the end of the year. As a team, we feel a little more pressure going into this knowing that we’ve got to execute week in and week out and, to me, that’s not a bad thing."

The Wood Brothers Racing organization, a storied name in NASCAR with a history dating back to 1953, will be looking to leverage their legacy and the recent infusion of talent and resources to contend for a championship. Their partnership with Team Penske for technical support has provided the No. 21 team with access to state-of-the-art equipment and engineering expertise, a significant advantage in the highly competitive Cup Series. Berry’s background in short-track racing and his success in the Xfinity Series have translated into a strong Cup debut, and his current focus on minimizing errors suggests a mature approach to his development as a top-tier driver. The team’s ability to translate their inherent speed into consistent, high finishes will be a defining narrative of their 2026 season.

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