RICHMOND, Va. – Not since Oct. 13, 2002 had a fill-in driver won a NASCAR Cup Series race, when Jamie McMurray did it at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Josh Berry came oh-so-close to being the first in 21 years on Sunday (April 2) at Richmond Raceway while filling in for Chase Elliott, as a strategy call paid off to put the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet up front amid several late-race yellows.
“I absolutely loved it,” Berry said of the team’s decision on pit road following the race. “I thought we had some good pace at times. We needed some clean air, and these guys, they thought outside the box. And that’s what it takes in these races; I think you never know what could happen.
“If you do the same that everybody around you does, then you’re gonna finish with them, and they made a couple bold calls — one that kept us on the lead lap early in the race and that one at the end to get us some track position.”
HMS Vice Chairman Jeff Gordon came up to Berry as he talked to media, congratulating him with a hug.
“Jeff Gordon was my hero when I was a kid,” he said. “That’s pretty amazing, man. One of the first races I remember watching was the ’97 Daytona 500 and that went pretty well for this company. So to be able to drive for them and to finish second place, I mean, it just really exceeds all my expectations.”
Berry began filling in at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the injured Elliott, a 10th-place effort at Phoenix Raceway his best result to date heading into the Commonwealth. He started 30th after both practice and qualifying were rained out, riding around in the back half of the field as the race began before spinning on the frontstretch on lap 96 after contact from Ryan Blaney.
“We were struggling a little bit, we were getting into the pack,” he said. “Got tight, I think, and Blaney was coming through the field and just got into me really light. I don’t think he meant to do nothing.”
So began the recovery for the No. 9 team, culminating in the strategy call that landed Berry with a runner-up finish.
“Just got a lot of people to thank on getting to this point,” Berry said. “Obviously Mr. H and Chase, everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, who gave me this opportunity […][and to] even be considered for opportunity like this.
“All the credit today goes to [interim crew chief] Tom [Gray] and this whole NAPA team, man. They made some amazing strategy calls. We…
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