NASCAR Cup Series star Josh Berry to leave team after 2026 season

NASCAR Cup Series star Josh Berry has confirmed that he will be leaving Wood Brothers Racing at the end of the season.

Berry made the revelation on a media call on Wednesday morning, announcing that the team would be moving on without him in the No. 21 car in 2027 and beyond.

The 35-year-old sits 30th in points after 15 races, a considerable way off the pace with a best finish of just ninth at the Daytona 500 – and only one other top-ten finish to his name this year.

That provides a stark contrast to 2025, when he and his team took full advantage of the last year of the 'win and in' format to secure a playoff berth after just five weeks with victory at Las Vegas.

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Josh Berry to leave Wood Brothers after two seasons

On the Wednesday call, Berry said: “Just to go ahead and put it out there, I will not be back in the 21 car next year. They’ve been amazing to work with, amazing people, and it’s been such a great opportunity.

“What I didn’t want to do was sit here and feed a line to you guys and then have it get announced [later], so I feel like that makes me pretty ignorant, so I wasn’t going to do that.”

He added: “You hear the rumor mills start going, so I’m not going to say that I was completely caught off guard. I didn’t exactly feel great about it. I probably would have said myself I was probably 50-50 in what was going on.

“Obviously, hit the ground running here, working hard to try and find out what’s out there, and certainly open and optimistic about any opportunities that come my way, but first and foremost, we’re going to do our best to finish this season strong and leave in a good place.”

What next for the Wood Brothers Racing No. 20?

The team later confirmed the news in a statement, writing: “We thank Josh Berry for all he’s done for Wood Brothers Racing and our partners over the last two seasons. Josh has been a great teammate and we look forward to a strong finish to this season.

"We wish Josh all the best moving forward. We will announce who will be driving the No. 21 Ford Mustang Dark Horse in 2027 soon and we are excited for what lies ahead for Wood Brothers Racing.”

Jesse Love is among the names linked with the No. 21.