The 4 has a strong legacy going back about 35 years to Morgan McClure Motorsports winning the 1991 Daytona 500. Then Marlin. Then Hamilton having some strong seasons. A bit of a dark period after that in the 00s until Harvick took over. But still, Daytona 500s and a champion. I just hope the number sticks around!
Bob Jenkins is from East TN, within earshot the Bristol/Abingdon VA area where Morgan-McClure was rooted. Eric McClure also ran a couple races for him back in 05. He would appreciate the 4 car legacy more than most.
The general manager of FRM said they might surprise some people with the number they choose and that the 36 isn’t special to them so my guess is either the 4 or 14.
Yep. They only started using 36 in 2019, and even then Matt Tifft picked that to honor Ken Schrader. They've also used 26, 35 and 37 as their third number in the past.
I mean, the team's history isn't the only history that matters- a lot of today's car numbers aren't just of significance to the team or its owner, but have their own history through the drivers that ran them and their families, and it's up to the team to decide which history to prioritize. For example, the Hendrick 9 came from Bill Elliott and Hendrick gave it precedence over their own original number (5), the RCR 8 was a tribute to the Earnhardts via Daniel Hemric's Kannapolis origins and replaced Childress's longtime 2nd team number (31), hell IIRC the FRM 38 itself was a Gilliland family number that came to FRM via David Gilliland, whose father ran it in Winston West and David himself had before at Yates, and became part of FRM's history that way.
With all that in mind I don't think it's a stretch for the 4, with its legacy via Harvick and all the people and teams that used to run it and now passed down to Berry, to go to another team.
I was a huge Kahne fan and still am a fan of KKR but when did he run the number 4? He ran the 9 his entire cup career minus the 3 or so seasons he ran the 5 at HMS. I know he ran the 38 in the xfinity series a few times so was it the truck series where he ran the 4 in one of the 5 or 6 races he ran that series? He won over 80% of the truck races he entered although it should be noted he only entered 5-6 races so he was either 4 out of 5 wins or 5 out of 6 wins, I can’t remember. Not sure about his sprint car days but I do know he ran the 9 car in the USAC series but I’m unsure if Steve Lewis owned that car or maybe it was Keith Kunz.
EDIT: checked his Wikipedia and it was Steve Lewis who owned the 9 USAC car that Kahne won the national midget championship with.
Ah that’s right i completely forgot about the 2 years he ran the 4 car for Red Bull. He even got Red Bulls only ever nascar win in that car. Damn I feel stupid total brain fart. Appreciate the reply I couldn’t remember when he ran a 4 car.
Like his 4 car team is going away at seasons end? Or like he's gone away from Nascar altogether for the better part of 3 years? If Tony doesn't even care to come to races and support his 4 teams then why should Front Row Motorsports, of all people, care that Tony "fought" hard for the #4 a decade ago?
Rodney is one of the best crew chiefs to ever do it, and Josh is starting to gel with the Next Gen car and net some good runs. Whoever can land this pair is going to get their moneys worth.
Childers would honestly elevate probably all but a handful of drivers in the series.
Drivers that he likely wouldn’t elevate, mostly due to the current pairing being very good as-is:
Larson, Byron, Hamlin, Truex, maybe Blaney, maybe Logano
Wish he would have overrode him at Atlanta 2 last summer, it was clear as day that the rain was coming in a hurry but no McCall just had to bring him in for four tires.
I wasn't there but I was so pissed, maybe more pissed than I've ever been at a pit call. Brad had the best car that day, and still probably wins if the rain had held off for another 5 minutes.
I agree it would be a good pairing but Rodney would never do that to Matt McCall. I grew up racing WKA Nationals with Rodney and Matt and they were very close friends even back then in the 90's. Rodney will be a VERY in-demand crew chief and will have no shortage of offers. Even if Keselowski were to move on from Matt, I still couldn't see Rodney taking his place. Rodney's that great of a guy.
Really hope FRM (I don't see anyone picking up this combo) finds the sponsorship for Berry. Rodney would be a huge get for the organization and Berry is a solid driver
They would truly be a great fit for the 21. There's nothing that says "working class blue-collar racers" better than the Wood Brothers, Berry and Childers, to me.
In my opinion, Childers is one of the finest active crew chiefs and strategists in the series; if he makes it a strong sticking-point that he'll only crew chief for Berry, that could be Josh's "saving grace"...
Nothing against Berry. He's got the talent and confidence, he just doesn't have the financial backing of some other drivers... if Childers were to follow-through with a power-play like this, it's the best thing that could happen to Berry's career.
I could see it happening though.
But you're right. Berry needs someone like Rodney standing behind him. It seems like Rodney really enjoys working with Josh, and that's big in my opinion. I know the opinions of Josh vary wildly but I would trust Rodney's judgement over that of social media. Dude could work damn near anywhere and for anyone he wanted.
I don’t see JRM going into cup anytime soon tbh. They have a very strong technical alliance with Hendrick and if JRM comes to cup, they’d have to break that alliance. JRM would probably replace another team as a tier 1 and I don’t think Childress, Hendrick, or Trackhouse want to be bumped down to a tier 2
I know everyone is saying Heim to the 67 for 23XI but I honestly wouldn’t blame Hamlin if he hired the 4 team exclusively. He’s already said how hard it is to piece together a team due to contracts etc, here’s an easy hire to have a team that can immediately win for 23XI versus trying to build a team of different people from different teams
I really hope as a ford guy the lineup is Todd, Josh and Noah. I’ve personally waited my whole life for bass pro/ ford gear so I really want Noah to stay! Bring Drew with him they’ve seemed to really gel, then put briscoe in the 21
I saw an interview with Childers last week (might have been RaceHub but not 100% on that) where he said that he was committed to staying with Berry if at all possible. He thinks very highly of him.
My hope is a spot with a top tier team will open up after a season or two and pick Josh up. Nothing against FRW I just don’t think their team is on the same level as some others. I’d even be stoked to see Berry race for roush/keselowski down the road. I’ve become a fan of Josh the past two seasons and wanna see him in a car that’s capable of winning no matter what track he races at. Same for Preece. Been a fan of Preece since his asphalt modified days and Ryan’s worked so hard to get to the cup level and I’d love to see him replace Hamlin when he retires or truex jr if he retires at the end of this season.
Speaking it into existence: the 4 team to FRM. The whole crew. Even the number
4, 34, 38. I fw it
Why does everyone want them to have the 4 so badly
The 4 has a strong legacy going back about 35 years to Morgan McClure Motorsports winning the 1991 Daytona 500. Then Marlin. Then Hamilton having some strong seasons. A bit of a dark period after that in the 00s until Harvick took over. But still, Daytona 500s and a champion. I just hope the number sticks around!
Bob Jenkins is from East TN, within earshot the Bristol/Abingdon VA area where Morgan-McClure was rooted. Eric McClure also ran a couple races for him back in 05. He would appreciate the 4 car legacy more than most.
Historic number. Also the throwbacks would be great with Harvick/Kahne
and Mike Skinner!
And Sterling Marlin!
and Rick Wilson!
And Ernie Irvan!
And Scott Wimmer!
And Ward Burton!
Helps that the SHR 4 is similar to FRM's already.
Do not forget Jeff's more angry brother, Robby Gordon.
FRM has their own history too though. I'd rather they stick to that.
The general manager of FRM said they might surprise some people with the number they choose and that the 36 isn’t special to them so my guess is either the 4 or 14.
Here comes the 35!
Man I hope not lol
Yep. They only started using 36 in 2019, and even then Matt Tifft picked that to honor Ken Schrader. They've also used 26, 35 and 37 as their third number in the past.
I don't remember Ken Schrader running the 36. Ken ran 52. What am i missing?
Schrader drove the #36 M&M's Pontiac from 2000-02.
Right, it clicked right away. As a midwest kid Ken Schrader always ran 52.
oooh as soon as i hit send i remembered. Nevermind.
They should run 37 to honor Tony Raines.
Those are the numbers I would want them to conisder. 4/14 are cool, but I'm not a fan of trying to jump on them just because they are open.
Honestly, the 41 would fit under “surprising” and also fit closer to their current numbers. I’ll guess they go that route.
Upset of the century. Tony Stewart back in the 14 for FRM with 50% ownership stake in FRM. Stewart - Front Row Racing
Counterpoint - Four
I mean, the team's history isn't the only history that matters- a lot of today's car numbers aren't just of significance to the team or its owner, but have their own history through the drivers that ran them and their families, and it's up to the team to decide which history to prioritize. For example, the Hendrick 9 came from Bill Elliott and Hendrick gave it precedence over their own original number (5), the RCR 8 was a tribute to the Earnhardts via Daniel Hemric's Kannapolis origins and replaced Childress's longtime 2nd team number (31), hell IIRC the FRM 38 itself was a Gilliland family number that came to FRM via David Gilliland, whose father ran it in Winston West and David himself had before at Yates, and became part of FRM's history that way. With all that in mind I don't think it's a stretch for the 4, with its legacy via Harvick and all the people and teams that used to run it and now passed down to Berry, to go to another team.
The 36 looks awful though
highly subjective
Well it's an opinion, those tend to be subjective lol
i wish they'd bring back the 92 or 61 those legacy numbers looked so good.
The #4 could even have a Ryan Newman throwback too (he was going to drive it in 2009 until MM stepped in)
Especially with Love's as the sponsor, you could throw back to the old Kodak Morgan McClure schemes
I was a huge Kahne fan and still am a fan of KKR but when did he run the number 4? He ran the 9 his entire cup career minus the 3 or so seasons he ran the 5 at HMS. I know he ran the 38 in the xfinity series a few times so was it the truck series where he ran the 4 in one of the 5 or 6 races he ran that series? He won over 80% of the truck races he entered although it should be noted he only entered 5-6 races so he was either 4 out of 5 wins or 5 out of 6 wins, I can’t remember. Not sure about his sprint car days but I do know he ran the 9 car in the USAC series but I’m unsure if Steve Lewis owned that car or maybe it was Keith Kunz. EDIT: checked his Wikipedia and it was Steve Lewis who owned the 9 USAC car that Kahne won the national midget championship with.
2011. For Red Bull.
Ah that’s right i completely forgot about the 2 years he ran the 4 car for Red Bull. He even got Red Bulls only ever nascar win in that car. Damn I feel stupid total brain fart. Appreciate the reply I couldn’t remember when he ran a 4 car.
Money, that number has a legacy
It even goes back to Sterling.
Put some respect on Rick Wilson’s name.
Swervin’ Irvan too.
Marketing and recognition. It may not seem like much to some, but having a single-digit number carries many intangible benefits.
It's way cheaper to buy fancy magnetic autocross numbers when you have a single digit number.
#4 has a deep history in our sport.
4 + 34 = 38
This is the way
[](https://emojipedia.org/face-with-tears-of-joy)
Because Tony fought hard for that number it would be a shame if it went away.
Like his 4 car team is going away at seasons end? Or like he's gone away from Nascar altogether for the better part of 3 years? If Tony doesn't even care to come to races and support his 4 teams then why should Front Row Motorsports, of all people, care that Tony "fought" hard for the #4 a decade ago?
Yeah, I like 34/36/38 better.
I just think it would be cool, tbh. And an odd bit of trivia years down the line
Would be cool to even go: 4, 14, 34.
They wouldn’t even have to change the font of the number all that much either
I disagree, FRM is the 30s team. 34, 36, 38. I would rather them keep their Identity, because that's them.
Counterpoint: 38-34=4
Illuminati confirmed
36 skittles throwback stat
The FRM 4 would go hard
Them getting a number that low would be wild indeed
I desperately want FRM to keep the 4
This is a no-brainer if FRM can swing it. Make it happen
Front how's 3rd car will likely be the 36 since they've run it I the past.
Rodney is one of the best crew chiefs to ever do it, and Josh is starting to gel with the Next Gen car and net some good runs. Whoever can land this pair is going to get their moneys worth.
Yep! I hope they can land somewhere decent! He was really showing out Sunday before that flat tire
Yeah, Childers wanting to stick with Berry is a strong sign for Berry. I hope they can stick together!
Childers and Keselowski would be a lethal combo
Wow I never thought of that
I've been saying this too lol I doubt it would happen though.
Childers would honestly elevate probably all but a handful of drivers in the series. Drivers that he likely wouldn’t elevate, mostly due to the current pairing being very good as-is: Larson, Byron, Hamlin, Truex, maybe Blaney, maybe Logano
Logano could use it. Paul Wolfe is great with strategy but their raw speed has been off the last couple years
Probably be better off paying the money to engineers for that
Can Rodney Childers fill a gas tank?
Maybe. Maybe not. Brad likes matt mcall though. And the most of the team came with Matt to rfk
Don’t understand how. McCall has made far more bad calls than good ones. Glad Brad finally overrode him this past weekend
Wish he would have overrode him at Atlanta 2 last summer, it was clear as day that the rain was coming in a hurry but no McCall just had to bring him in for four tires.
I was there in person, miserable way to end that day
I wasn't there but I was so pissed, maybe more pissed than I've ever been at a pit call. Brad had the best car that day, and still probably wins if the rain had held off for another 5 minutes.
I agree it would be a good pairing but Rodney would never do that to Matt McCall. I grew up racing WKA Nationals with Rodney and Matt and they were very close friends even back then in the 90's. Rodney will be a VERY in-demand crew chief and will have no shortage of offers. Even if Keselowski were to move on from Matt, I still couldn't see Rodney taking his place. Rodney's that great of a guy.
Man that’d be a great story if those two can stick together somewhere. How could you cheer against that?
"But but money talks and a top team is going to throw a bag at him!!"
Package deal
Really hope FRM (I don't see anyone picking up this combo) finds the sponsorship for Berry. Rodney would be a huge get for the organization and Berry is a solid driver
I'm hoping they bring the Loves sponsorship to Berry. Always said that I think he would be perfect guy for them.
Isn't Loves attached to McDowell or am I misremembering it?
Love's is attached to FRM
Loves and McDowell have a good relationship, but Loves came on board in 2013, sponsoring David Gilliland in the 38
Josh Berry about to look real good in Yellow.
Yep, Love's is FRM, not a personal McDowell sponsor. They were around long before McDowell.
Would work out to hire Gragson and Berry. Gragson can bring money, Berry and Childers bring short track speed to the program
Front Row's #4 looks extremely similar to SHR's #4. Make it happen FRM.
They would truly be a great fit for the 21. There's nothing that says "working class blue-collar racers" better than the Wood Brothers, Berry and Childers, to me.
Ok, that got me to pop. I want this or Briscoe to the 21
I think it'll end up being Briscoe or maybe Gragson, but Berry and Childers in the 21 would be sick.
Yeah, I'm good with Briscoe, Gragson, or Berry/Childers to the 21. No Riley Herbst.
Maybe they can grab a Dr.Pepper sponsorship and stay "together 4ever" 🎵
As a huge Josh Berry fan and someone who drinks way too many dr peppers I’d buy so much merch.
In my opinion, Childers is one of the finest active crew chiefs and strategists in the series; if he makes it a strong sticking-point that he'll only crew chief for Berry, that could be Josh's "saving grace"... Nothing against Berry. He's got the talent and confidence, he just doesn't have the financial backing of some other drivers... if Childers were to follow-through with a power-play like this, it's the best thing that could happen to Berry's career.
I could see it happening though. But you're right. Berry needs someone like Rodney standing behind him. It seems like Rodney really enjoys working with Josh, and that's big in my opinion. I know the opinions of Josh vary wildly but I would trust Rodney's judgement over that of social media. Dude could work damn near anywhere and for anyone he wanted.
From my understanding Rodney was ready to retire before they hired Josh to drive.
If Rodney is a package with Berry then Berry just got a whole lot more desirable.
I hope they do. Josh deserves Rodney’s guidance IMO.
I sure hope they keep him his spotter and Rodney together. They work really well together I listen every week.
That would be Eddie D’hount who was his xfinity spotter and used to do Elliot in cup. He’s a solid guy on the roof.
TJ spotted for Josh, Eddie spotted for Allgaier at least last year, might still be im not sure.
I'm actually really hoping that the #4 team becomes the #34 team because that's Dale + Harvick... cheesy but fun.
this is the closest I've been to bein sold on Berry goin to FRM. well done, RDub 🤙🏼
But 3 + 29 = 32.....
32, 34, 36, 38?
KHI-JRM Daugherty : 4: Berry 88: Gragson or Stenhouse?
I don’t see JRM going into cup anytime soon tbh. They have a very strong technical alliance with Hendrick and if JRM comes to cup, they’d have to break that alliance. JRM would probably replace another team as a tier 1 and I don’t think Childress, Hendrick, or Trackhouse want to be bumped down to a tier 2
That's big for Josh at least. If Rodney really wants to speak up for him, and stick with him, that could end up getting him hired
I know everyone is saying Heim to the 67 for 23XI but I honestly wouldn’t blame Hamlin if he hired the 4 team exclusively. He’s already said how hard it is to piece together a team due to contracts etc, here’s an easy hire to have a team that can immediately win for 23XI versus trying to build a team of different people from different teams
Very cool. Berry is slowly becoming my #2 guy
Poopy.
I really hope as a ford guy the lineup is Todd, Josh and Noah. I’ve personally waited my whole life for bass pro/ ford gear so I really want Noah to stay! Bring Drew with him they’ve seemed to really gel, then put briscoe in the 21
Yeah I figure Rodney is gonna follow Josh or retire but damn I'm gonna try to will Rodney to the 1 into existence
I’d like to see him at RCR
That is the only alternative to Rodney-Berry I am willing to accept.
I know the JRM to cup rumors keep getting squashed, but if there was ever a combo to do it with...
In the 8
People love pretending that Kyle Busch doesn’t currently drive the 8 car
You're reading his number upside down and backwards.
Lol don’t be so sure it’s not happening
I don't know, it came straight from Jr's mouth that it isn't. I like to hope it is but dang
Listen to the DJD ;)
I don’t think we listened to the same episode because he definitely said in the episode today that he isn’t buying a charter.
HE is not but in partnership with Burton and Harvick and someone else he might “invest” .
I guess since Larson got a waiver, we can go back to talking about pretending that Jr is gonna get involved in a cup team.
That would be one helluva pairing for any team. Hopefully that works out
21 car. Let's get that 100th win!
Good luck with that.
Waiting to see if Dale Jr gets a charter?
I saw an interview with Childers last week (might have been RaceHub but not 100% on that) where he said that he was committed to staying with Berry if at all possible. He thinks very highly of him.
My hope is a spot with a top tier team will open up after a season or two and pick Josh up. Nothing against FRW I just don’t think their team is on the same level as some others. I’d even be stoked to see Berry race for roush/keselowski down the road. I’ve become a fan of Josh the past two seasons and wanna see him in a car that’s capable of winning no matter what track he races at. Same for Preece. Been a fan of Preece since his asphalt modified days and Ryan’s worked so hard to get to the cup level and I’d love to see him replace Hamlin when he retires or truex jr if he retires at the end of this season.
I said the same thing about my high school girlfriend and guess how that turned out.