Josh Berry is in seventh heaven. The Hendrick Motorsports driver emerged victorious at the All-Star Open on an electric evening at North Wilkesboro. Having to face an in-form Ty Gibbs en route to victory, Josh Berry had to wait for his moment as he seized the chance.

Returning to North Carolina after a long time, the All-Star Open did not disappoint. The three-way battle between Ty Gibbs, Berry, and Michael McDowell was one to watch out for. The on-track tussle been McDowell and Ty Gibbs was the turning point of the race as the former’s retaliation against the latter paved the way for Berry to forge ahead.

Victorious Josh Berry acknowledges Ty Gibbs

Speaking in a post-race interview, Berry was exuberant about the win. Thanking the benefactors, he talked about how his wait for the right moment to seize paid off. On being questioned about the excitement around attending the All-Star Race for the first time, he said,

“Oh, man! I feel so relieved. These guys deserve to be in this race so bad. Thank you so much, Hendrick Motorsports, for believing in me and giving me this opportunity under the circumstances. Ally, everybody back at Hendrick Motorsports and Chevrolet. Man, this is really cool. Our car was solid. We were definitely better than the second run.”

Further explaining the fortunate boost from McDowell and commending Ty for his efforts, he said, “We got some help there with whatever happened with the #34. I don’t know what that was, pretty bad. You know we’re able to get the lead and stretch it out a little bit and just kind of maintain it. I think the two best cars made it so. We’ll just see what tonight gives us.”

The witty response from Berry in a congested and tricky situation was what turned the tide in his favour, a small gap that opened up his path to victory indeed.

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The Hendrick Motorsports driver made full use of the chaos

Berry’s win happened in a dramatic manner. Ensuring that he was in a position to make the best out of the on track mess that occurred between McDowell and new Joe Gibbs Racing sensation, Ty.

Ty Gibbs finished second and also qualified for the All-Star Race. Berry passed him with 23 laps remaining. McDowell boosted Berry’s #48 as he passed Gibbs closely through Turns 3 and 4. The HMS man overtook and seized the lead for good as a result of that contact on lap 78. The opportunity to race in the All-Star open came for Berry as he filled in for the injured Alex Bowman.

With 43 laps remaining, McDowell crashed into Justin Haley because of Gibbs. Later on in the race, McDowell delayed Gibbs’ advancement as the leaders passed lapped vehicles. In an eventful turn of events, Berry showed how a classic case of presence of mind could affect a race so positively.

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