Eckes Loads Up for Run to the Chase in Coronado
Venue: Coronado Naval Base
Events: Navy 250
Date: Friday, June 19
Location: Coronado, CA
Track Description: 3.4-mile street course
Distance: 50 laps / 170 miles (7:00 p.m. ET – FOX Sports 1, Motor Racing Network, SiriusXM)
Operation: Chasing the Chase … This Friday’s unique inaugural event at Coronado Naval Base is next on Christian Eckes’ 2026 operation as the Chase draws near. The driver of the No. 91 Columbia Bank Chevrolet Silverado RST comes to the U.S. Navy’s home base aiming to conquer the tall task of navigating the 3.4-mile street circuit and regain points in the championship standings with six races remaining before the Chase for the title. Eckes is still on a mission to capture his first road course win and a new layout for all the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks Series (NCTS) competitors provides a fresh opportunity. Despite two results outside the top-10 on road courses this season, Eckes has an abundant road course background to master the Coronado Naval Base.
Jolly Rogers Land in San Diego … The Columbia Bank Chevrolet is flying the colors of the Navy’s “Jolly Rogers” in San Diego, the Navy’s Strike Fighter Squadron VFA 103. The stealth charcoal and silver mixed with the squadron’s iconic skull and crossbones imagery adorns the No. 91 as Eckes and team pay homage to our nation’s armed forces. He will also feature a commemorative helmet which replicates the Jolly Rogers VF-84 squadron, which was active from 1955-1995, and piloted numerous aircraft including the F-14A Tomcat. Eckes hopes to put the “Jolly Rogers” at the front of the field on Friday, as he’s done on road courses numerous times in his career. His 12 previous NCTS road course starts have yielded two top-five’s and five top-10 results. Additionally, his NASCAR Xfinity Series rookie season produced three top-five’s and five top-10 finishes in seven events in 2025.
Season to Date … Through 12 of 25 NCTS events, Eckes arrives in San Diego, Calif. fifth in the drivers’ point standings with three top-five’s and seven top-10 results. Eckes has top-10 results in five of the last seven races and is tied for the most stage wins among full-time NCTS competitors with three. His average finish of 12.1 ranks among the top-five and has led 173 laps, second-most among full-time drivers.
Tune In … The Coronado Naval Base circuit opens for practice at 12:00 p.m. ET Friday afternoon on FOX Sports 2, followed by qualifying at 2:00 p.m. ET. The inaugural green flag drops on Friday evening at 7:00 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1. Stay connected with the No. 91 Columbia Bank team by following @BMR_NASCAR on Twitter, @bmr_nascar on Instagram, and Bill McAnally Racing on Facebook.
Christian Eckes Quote:
On the inaugural event at Coronado Naval Base:
“This is definitely going to be the most unique race that I’ve been a part of in my career, for sure. It’s pretty surreal to think we’re going to go out there and race on an active Navy base. Super honored to be able to be there, and to be able to show our appreciation to the Navy and run the ‘Jolly Rogers’ colors on our Columbia Bank Chevy this week. It’s going to be an extremely technical track. Lots of challenges, with a lot of blind corners and different transitions from one corner to the next. Everyone has talked about how rough the surface is, especially in some of the hard braking zones. Minimizing mistakes on Friday is going to be a big key and just putting consistent laps together. Hopefully we can do that and have some decent pace in our Chevrolet on Friday.”