Heading into the Pennzoil 400, all eyes were on Christopher Bell and William Byron amid their neck-and-neck battle in the championship standings. Bell was aiming for a record-equaling fourth consecutive Cup Series victory, while Byron sought to extend his lead at the top of the standings. However, little did the NASCAR community know that it would be Josh Berry and Wood Brothers making headlines by the end of the race.
Against the odds, a resilient Berry fought his way from seventh to secure his first-ever Cup Series victory, ending the Wood Brothers’ brief victory drought.
Despite the frequent cautions and a chaotic pit road, Berry managed to stay out of trouble and eventually made it to the victory. This also makes Berry only the third driver to win a Cup Series race this season — with Bell and Byron taking home the rest of the hardware.
Josh Berry Hails Teamwork After Historic Win in Las Vegas
Following the race, the 34-year-old lauded the team’s all-around efforts in orchestrating the win in Sin City. “Yeah, really just trying to soak it all in, honestly. We had a really solid day, a solid car. We were in contention all day,” he said during the post-race interview.
🏁 “Just trying to soak it all in.”@joshberry reflects on his first career Cup Series victory for @woodbrothers21 at @LVMotorSpeedway.
🗣️ “I have an amazing group around me.” pic.twitter.com/TlM5Z8MOq2
— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) March 17, 2025
“I don’t know if we were the best car, but we were really solid, and we had that mistake on Pit Road, and we just put our heads down and kind of tried to fight our way back into it, and, the whole strategy thing kind of opened up the door where we were able to stay out that one time, and then me and Joey [Logano] were battling so hard for the lead, and I thought that was going to be for the lead.”
For Berry this marked his first career Cup Series win, improving on his fourth-place finish in Phoenix. It was his first podium finish since June 23, 2024 at the USA TODAY 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. For Wood Brothers, though, it was their first Cup race victory since Aug. 24, 2024.
READ MORE: Pennzoil 400 Results — Josh Berry Stuns the NASCAR World With 1st Career Cup Win
“I was honestly hoping it was going to be green, stay green. I was just trying to manage my stuff a little bit better, and we’re going to have to save a little fuel, but, you know, caught that caution, and the pit crew executed and put us out on the front row, and, man, that was a battle with Daniel [Suárez], but we were able to get it done,” Berry said.
Overall, in the process of claiming his career-first win in the Cup Series, Berry also became the first NASCAR Weekly Series champion to ever win a NASCAR Cup Series race, etching himself into the sport’s history books.