CONCORD, N.C. — Tony Stewart made it clear on Wednesday afternoon that Josh Berry was being appointed to the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing entry for a reason.
And that reason didn’t come with a price tag.
“I am not interested in some kid’s father coming and buying their way into the Cup Series,” Stewart said. “I have zero interest in that. We want guys that earn their way, that work hard, that understand the values that it takes to be a top-tier driver — not one that just got his high school diploma and now all of a sudden he’s a Cup driver.”
The three-time Cup Series champion and co-owner of SHR is adamant that drivers should be selected based on merit, not funding.
After all, it’s how Stewart climbed to the NASCAR major leagues in the 1990s, after making a name for himself on the open-wheel circuit. He made his Cup Series debut in 1999 and went on to win 49 races over the next 18 years.
Since joining Gene Haas in 2008 to create SHR, Stewart has worked to instill the dedicated, grassroots mindset within the team’s culture.
“It’s not about guys that just come in, spend their time during the day and when the clock gets to the point where it’s time to leave, they all just bail out of there. We got people there that care about race cars, and that’s all they think about is racing. That’s what this guy (Josh Berry) has done for years,” Stewart said.
Similar to what Stewart did in open-wheel racing, Berry has done in the late model stock car world. The 2017 CARS Tour champion has a number of noteworthy feats to his credit, including a win at the Jack Ingram Memorial at Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway last year and the 2020 NASCAR Weekly Series title.
He’s also logged laps in the Xfinity Series with JR Motorsports, earning five wins in 69 starts with the team.
On Wednesday afternoon, Berry secured his full-time ticket to the Cup Series, as SHR announced that the 32-year-old will replace Kevin Harvick after his retirement at season’s end.
The fact that Berry doesn’t boast sponsorship dollars is not a concern for Stewart. The team owner has already been curating conversation with potential partners for the No. 4, though he noted that they are “totally open” for sponsorship for next year.
“Josh has put the time, the effort and every time he’s got an opportunity, he’s made the most of it,” Stewart said. “Those are the traits that championship drivers are built off of, not the easy ticket to get there.”