A sixth place "wasn't very good" back at Pukekohe late last month, alongside the big boys of the V8 Supercars.
However, last weekend's fifth position was enough for him to claim his maiden bragging rights in the category after he settled for third overall last season.
"Patience," he answered when asked what did it for him this season.
Barry, who used to race in the Suzuki Swifts and speedway before that, is the son of the late Peter Barry, of CHB, who died six years ago on a speedway track in Palmerston North.
"That just made me want to win it more. He would have loved it if he was here," said Barry after taming the tracks on his Ford Falcon BF.
Barry now harbours ambition to graduate to the New Zealand Touring Cars scene next year.
"It'll take some money so I'll find some sponsors," he said, happy to approach some contacts.
"In a way, I'll be going much faster than what Dad loved to do. He'd definitely be proud of me."
His father and mother, Andrea, a CHB dairy farmer, left Te Awamutu when he was just 1-month-old.
Barry attended Sherwood School and spent two years at Hereworth School in Havelock North before finishing high school at CHB College in Waipukurau.
"I grew up with it [motor racing] and it's something I always loved," he said, revealing he was into paddock cars at the age of 8 before slipping into the driver's seat of the Ministocks in speedway four years later.
His older brother, Robert, 23, is a former speedway enthusiast and they have a sister, Olivia, 25.
Barry's ultimate dream is to compete in the V8 Supercars in Australia before basking in the glory of the Nascar series.
"I've got to be picked up by a big team to get that opportunity to build a career," said the young man, who competed three times in Australia last year at Perth, Sandown and Bathurst.
"I was on the big stage and learned to handle pressure on utes."
Asked if the jump across the Ditch and to the United States would be a giant leap in faith, he replied: "They all go past but all about the money, so I have to get international sponsors."
He thanked all his Bay backers while waiting for "the big break".
It helps that his Waipukurau girlfriend, Lara, has a passion for the sport.
Barry has created a conspicuous pathway after attending a 10-day elite Motorsport New Zealand academy in Dunedin in April this year.
"It was useful and had a lot to do with off-the-track nutrition and mental side of things."
Part of his professional approach is adhering to a strict diet and frequenting the gym for workouts five times a week.
"I've always been a reasonably healthy eater but I'm a lot stricter now."
