Eckes Clinches Chase Berth Despite Misfortune at IRP
Christian Eckes clinched his spot in the Chase for the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks Series (NCTS) championship on Friday night at Indianapolis Raceway Park despite a 33rd-place finish. The driver of the No. 91 Cloyes / Rotomaster Chevrolet Silverado RST succumbed to an oil leak during the race’s first caution and forced him behind the wall, disrupting a top-five run. Nevertheless, Eckes remains fourth in the NCTS points standings with two races remaining before the Chase.
Eckes turned in his second-best qualifying effort of the season by posting the fourth-fastest time under the afternoon sunshine. Once the green flag flew, Eckes immediately used momentum from the outside lane to take second position on the opening lap. As the opening 60-lap stage ran entirely under green flag conditions, Eckes was never challenged for the runner-up spot despite managing a lack of forward drive and tight condition in the center of both corners. The second-place running position produced nine points for Eckes when the stage checker flew on lap 60.
The night turned under caution when Eckes reported that his voltage had dropped to under 11, then simultaneously suffered an oil leak. After making a standard four tire pit stop, the leak worsened and necessitated Eckes to pull behind the wall to the attention of the Cloyes / Rotomaster team to diagnose the issue.
Eckes ultimately saw the checkered flag in 33rd position after completing 164 of the 200 laps. The 14 points he scored on the night was sufficient to clinch a spot in the seven-race championship Chase.
“Just disappointing way to end a promising night,” Eckes said. “The No. 34 was really good but I felt like we had pretty good pace in Stage 1. Proud of the speed we had in our Cloyes / Rotomaster Chevrolet tonight. We qualified well and fired off pretty good even though we were lacking some forward drive and tight in the middle. Just need to clean up these issues before we get to Richmond.”
Start / Finish: 4 / 33
Points Standing / Total: 4th / 496 pts. (-220)
Next Race: Friday, August 14, Richmond Raceway
How to Watch or Listen: 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1 or SiriusXM
NAPA: @NAPARacing
Christian Eckes: @christianeckes
Bill McAnally Racing: @BMR_NASCAR
McAnally-Hilgemann Racing View All
McAnally-Hilgemann Racing is focused on the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) championship in 2025 with four full-time drivers and teams. Daniel Hemric, NASCAR Cup Series veteran and 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) champion, has joined MHR to drive the No. 19 NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet Silverado RST in the organization’s 35th season in partnership with NAPA. Crew chief Josh Graham also joins MHR in 2025 to serve as the team’s crew chief and brings NXS experience to the operation. The duo will look to continue MHR’s winning ways and return to the playoffs to make a run for the organization’s first NCTS title.