Eckes Begins Playoff Run in Pursuit of First Milwaukee Victory
Venue: The Milwaukee Mile
Event: LIUNA 175
Date: Sunday, August 25
Location: West Allis, WI
Track Description: 1.01-mile oval
Distance: 175 laps, 177.62 miles (4:00 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1, Motor Racing Network)
The Playoff Quest Begins … Christian Eckes’ fourth playoff run begins on Sunday at The Milwaukee Mile after being crowned the 2024 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks Series regular season titlist. The driver of the No. 19 NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet Silverado RST enters the first round of the playoffs second in points with a 36-point advantage over the provisional cut line. The 24-year-old has constructed a staggering campaign after 16 regular season events with remarkable consistency. He has earned a miniscule average finish of 5.9 along with three wins and a series-high eight stage wins. Eckes has advanced to the Round of 8 three times in his career, but looks to make the 2024 campaign the year where he advances to the promised land and his first-career title.
Red Hot … Eckes has been widely regarded as one of the preemptive playoff favorites due to his recent red-hot record. The New Yorker hopes to extend his current streak of consecutive podium finishes to six on Sunday in his second start at The Milwaukee Mile. Dating back to a second-place result at World Wide Technology Raceway in June, Eckes has finished third or better in five-straight races, including a victory at Nashville Superspeedway. He has continued his elite level on tracks one mile and shorter throughout the summer. Back-to-back second-place finishes at Indianapolis Raceway Park (IRP) and Richmond Raceway have given Eckes an average finish of 2.22 over the last nine races at tracks one mile and shorter. During that time since last year’s playoffs began at IRP, Eckes has recorded three wins, eight podium finishes, including a third-place result in Milwaukee last season.
Season to Date … The 16-race regular season title was rightfully earned by Eckes and the NAPA Auto Care team after posting three wins, 10 top-five’s, and 15 top-10 finishes. Eckes has led a staggering 762 laps this season, including having led in all 16 races and in the last 17, dating back to the 2023 season finale. He has tied his career-high number of top-five’s (10), top-10 finishes (15), and laps led. His 5.9 average finish and eight stage wins have topped all NCTS drivers this season and looks to improve those numbers in the playoffs starting in Milwaukee.
Tune In … Coverage from the legendary Milwaukee Mile begins Sunday afternoon with the green flag at 4:00 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1. Stay connected with the No. 19 NAPA Auto Care team by following @BMR_NASCAR on Twitter, @bmrnascar on Instagram, and Bill McAnally Racing on Facebook.
Christian Eckes Quote:
On beginning the playoffs at Milwaukee:
“Our NAPA Auto Care team is ready to go this weekend. We’ve been looking forward to this all season since we locked ourselves in. I feel like we’ve done a pretty good job at executing all year and have had good speed most weekends, so we’re in a good spot to start the playoffs. We were in the ballpark at Milwaukee last year and able to finish third. Just lacked a little bit to have race-winning speed, but I think we can change that this weekend. It’s a really low-grip flat track, unlike anywhere else we go. It’s a bit of a curveball for everyone, but I’m looking forward to it and hopefully we can start our playoff run the right way.”