The good times continue to roll for Josh Berry and the No. 21 DEX Imaging team as they are set to start on the front row for Sunday’s Straight Talk Wireless 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Berry took that spot with a lap at 168.460 miles per hour during qualifying Saturday afternoon. The strong qualifying performance comes on the heels of a win at Las Vegas and a top-five finish at Phoenix the week before.
“I’m so happy with everyone on the 21 team,” Berry told reporters at Homestead. “They’re making me look good right now. We’ve got really good cars. The car’s been really solid. Thanks to everyone on the 21 team, everybody at Wood Brothers Racing, Team Penske, DEX Imaging for coming on board this week, all our partners at Motorcraft and eero. It’s been a fun start to the season. We’re just trying to keep it going, doing the same thing week in and week out, and being prepared.”
As has been the case in recent weeks practice numbers at Homestead were not an indication of what came next. Berry was 31st on the speed chart with a best lap at 164.469 mph, which he posted on the second of 30 laps he ran in the session. Among drivers who ran 10 consecutive laps, he was 17th best, averaging 162.474 mph over his first 10 laps.
Sunday’s 267-lap, 400.5-mile race is expected to get the green flag just after 3 p.m. with TV coverage on FOX Sports 1. Stage breaks are planned for Laps 80 and 165.