Kevin Harvick and Mamba Smith Exposes How Josh Berry Is Making Team Penske Better

Josh Berry has achieved a massive boost in performance in just his sophomore season in NASCAR. The No.21 driver of the Wood Brothers Racing has already emerged victorious in one race after scoring multiple top 10 finishes this season.

Berry’s boost in performance is also helping Team Penske ultimately, as the two teams have a technical alliance and share all the equipment and engineering data. Now, Kevin Harvick has shared his opinions on Penske’s imminent success, partly due to the 34-year-old.

Josh Berry had replaced Harrison Burton last year despite the latter seemingly performing great at Wood Brothers Racing. However, the team decided to lock in with the driver with more experience as Berry took the seat of the No.21 challenger. Now, the team’s risky decision to replace Burton has seemingly paid of well as the 34-year-old helps not only his own team, but also Team Penske due to their alliance.

Kevin Harvick shares his opinion on Josh Berry’s strong results on track and how Wood Brothers Racing has turned their season around. Harvick reckons that Berry’s performance has been impressive, as he is happy for the team overall.

However, the No.21 driver suffered from multiple penalties that caused him to lose crucial track positions despite possessing great speed on the track. The Hall of Famer believes that people will also talk about the negatives more than his positives, as he needs to commit fewer mistakes.

It really has [been impressive]. I’m happy for all of them [at Wood Brothers], I think when you see the speed Josh had — he was leading the race last week before the spin at Texas — and now this week, had a penalty on pit road that put them to the back of the pack and drove all the way to the front. Those penalties stick out a lot more than when you’re running in the middle of the pack….

Kevin Harvick said on his Happy Hour podcast

Kevin Harvick’s co-host of the show, Mamba Smith, was also present to put forth his opinion on the status quo. Smith highlights that Josh Berry’s excellence this season is greatly helping Team Penske gain more feedback on their car.

Although Penske has great drivers like Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, and Austin Cindric in their arsenal, Berry’s additional input is only helping them gain more traction. Moreover, the 34-year-old extra experience in the sport, as compared to Burton, is helping the team perform even better.

The thing Josh Berry is bringing to Penske is just his awareness of his car. He’s been racing for a long time,  Josh has had more time and he’s able to bring something different to the table that is really clicking with the rest of that group. Now, you have four guys that you can rely on the information you’re getting from him.

Mamba Smith said on the Happy Hour podcast

Kevin Harvick claims Josh Berry ‘learning to be consistent winner’

The 2025 NASCAR season is just 12 races in, and Josh Berry has already achieved a coveted race win in Las Vegas. Moreover, Berry boasts a handful of top-five and top-ten finishes this season as he aims to score even better results now. Kevin Harvick believes that, seeing the No.21 driver’s experience already, it wouldn’t be long before he makes winning races as a habit.

Kevin Harvick points out that Josh Berry is coming into contention and learning to become a consistent winner. Berry possesses great speed and experience, and just needs to tone down the penalties for minor mistakes on track. The No.21 driver is also becoming a threat to his rivals for scoring the race wins as he continues to improve his results on track with Wood Brothers Racing.

But speed rules. Those guys are in contention and they’re right in front of our eyes learning how to be consistent winners. … Every week we talk about knowing that they’re fast and they know that they’re fast and when that confidence starts to grow, then you can overcome the penalties on pit road and overcome the spin outs. Instead of focusing on finishing races and hoping for everyone’s bad luck, you’re changing the complexion of race weekends because now you’re a part of the conversation.

Kevin Harvick noted

The 2025 season has peaked in competition and excitement at the forefront, as even Josh Berry seems to become a regular in contending for the race wins. While Penske seems to suffer from a minor slump in performance, the team is sure to bounce back soon, more so due to Berry’s extended support from Wood Brothers Racing. Hence, time will tell about how the 34-year-old fares against the people’s hopes in him over the season.

Read more: Kyle Busch Plans to Forge Kyle Larson Inspired Path to NASCAR for Son Brexton

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