Track Specs: Tri-County Speedway, .400-mile oval/75-lap feature
Berry’s finish: 1st
Cox’s finish: 8th
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (March 29, 2021) – Josh Berry made his second appearance in the familiar All Things Automotive/iRacing Chevrolet Late Model this season, and it was business as usual for the Tennessee native. Berry won the 75-lap NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series event on the .400-mile oval Saturday night, while teammate William Cox III recovered from a late spin to earn an eighth-place finish.
Berry, the 2020 NAAPWS champion, didn’t waste any time declaring that he was back and ready for the challenge. Racing while the NASCAR Xfinity Series had its first off-weekend of the season, Berry set a track record in qualifying to earn the pole for the 75-lapper.
On the initial start, Berry tucked into second place for the first eight laps before taking the point, which he held until the halfway point. Following a caution flag, Berry battled with Jacob Heafner and Justin Johnson for the top spot before taking it back with 30 laps remaining. He would hold the top spot to the checkered flag, topping Austin McDaniel. In his two Late Model races so far this season, Berry has finished first and second.
Cox, the 15-year-old driver from Raleigh, N.C., qualified sixth on the night in his No. 88 Capital Chevrolet/Sokal Media Group Chevrolet and spent the opening laps moving up and down the running order on the partially repaved oval. With around 20 laps remaining, contact from another car caused the young driver to spin out of a top-10 position and sent him to the tail of the field.
With three-quarters of the race distance in the books, Cox was left with no option but to charge hard over the remaining laps, and he did, working his way back to eighth when the checkered flag waved. Over his first four races for JRM, Cox has averaged a finish of 7.0 while getting acquainted with the booming Late Model Stock Car competition in the region.
Josh Berry, driver No. 8 All Things Automotive/iRacing Chevrolet team
“Tri-County is one of my favorite tracks, and they paved Turns 3 and 4 which made it a pretty unique challenge. It seemed like it took our car a couple laps to get going, but after that it was really good. We had a fun battle for the lead and ended up pulling away to win. I just want to thank All Things Automotive, iRacing, and everyone at JR Motorsports for letting us come have some fun this weekend.”
William Cox III, driver No. 88 Capital Chevrolet/Sokal Media Group Chevrolet team
“We gained a lot of experience at the half-newly-paved Tri-County Motor Speedway in my JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro sponsored by Capital Chevrolet, Sokal Media Group, Christensen Arms, and Autec Car Wash Systems. Thanks to the JR Motorsports team for the hard work they put into the car and I can’t wait for our next race!”