Eckes resetting for chase rebound in the heartland
Venue: Kansas Speedway
Event: Race to Stop Suicide 200
Date: Saturday, September 26
Location: Kansas City, KS
Track Description: 1.5-mile tri oval
Distance: 134 laps, 201 miles (1:00 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1, Motor Racing Network, SiriusXM)
Going for Two … Former Kansas Speedway winner, Christian Eckes, returns to the Sunflower State in search for his second victory at the 1.5-mile track in a crucial moment of the season. The driver of the No. 91 Motion Industries Chevrolet Silverado RST visited Kansas’ victory lane in September 2023 and looks to use this weekend as a reset in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks Series (NCTS) Chase. After beginning the Chase fourth in the standings, a 30th-place finish last week at Bristol Motor Speedway (BMS) has Eckes “behind the sticks” entering the second round at Kansas Speedway. Eckes has three prior NCTS victories at 1.5-mile tracks and looks to add a fourth on Saturday afternoon.
“Are You Experienced?” … Eckes has more experience at Kansas Speedway than any other venue on the NCTS slate. Saturday’s 200-miler marks his 11th NCTS start on the Heartland’s progressive banks, and will be his 13th overall combined with experience in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and ARCA Menards Series (AMS). Eckes not only has been experienced, but also elite in Kansas. In four prior starts with MHR at Kansas Speedway, Eckes has three top-three finishes, including a win in 2023 and has led laps in all four races. In his 10 prior NCTS races, Eckes has led laps in nine of them and collected six top-five’s and eight top-10 finishes. He also claimed an AMS victory in 2019 and has led laps in every series in which he’s competed at Kansas.
Season to Date … Despite opening the Chase with a difficult start at BMS, Eckes is still within 58 points of the lead and sits eighth in the standings. Through 19 races, Eckes has scored six top-five’s, 11 top-10 finishes and has an average finish of 13.9 with three stage victories.
Tune In … The Kansas race weekend gets underway Friday afternoon with practice and qualifying at 5:00 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 2. The green flag drops on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1. Stay connected with the No. 91 Motion Industries team by following @BMR_NASCAR on Twitter, @bmr_nascar on Instagram, and Bill McAnally Racing on Facebook.
Christian Eckes Quote:
On returning to Kansas as a former winner:
“Kansas is a place that gives you some of the most options as a driver of anywhere we go. I’ve been fortunate to run pretty well there over the years and have always felt comfortable. It’s been a while since we were at a mile-and-a-half, but our No. 91 team has been looking forward to this ever since we ran so well at Charlotte. Hopefully we can replicate what we did there with our Motion Industries Chevy this weekend. Everybody at MHR, and especially our No. 91 group, put a lot of effort into finding more speed on the intermediates, and felt like we did that at Charlotte. We need improve our execution this weekend and dig ourselves back out of the hole we’re in, but we’re more than capable of it, for sure.”