NCTS Lucky 13: Christian Eckes – Darlington

Lucky 13 rides along with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series regular who qualifies 13th, keeping an eye on how their race unfolds. This driver could be sent to the back of the pack and still pull off a victory, or their luck could take a nosedive early in the race. With luck on their side – or against them – anything can happen! So, grab your four-leaf clovers, your lucky horseshoes, and maybe even a rabbit’s foot for the latest Lucky 13! Will it be fortune or misfortune? Let’s find out!

Buckle Up SC 200

Driver: Christian Eckes
Organization & Number: McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, #91
Crew Chief: David Elenz
Spotter: Brit Anderson

Note: Since three NASCAR Cup Series regulars qualified ahead of P13, we counted to the NCTS regular who qualified 13th – Christian Eckes in P16.

“Let’s turn it around today and have some fun!” – Christian Eckes

Stage 1

Rolling off from P16, Christian Eckes looked to regroup the season. He quickly jumped four spots, but the caution waved on Lap 3 when Ben Rhodes slammed the wall in Turn 1.

Eckes restarted from P12 on Lap 8, hoping for a longer green flag run. He rocketed into the top 10, then worked around Gio Ruggiero for P9.

The next caution came on Lap 14 when the No. 1 of William Sawalich went for a spin.

Eckes noted that his truck was pretty tight, but he did not want adjustments quite yet.

Lap 19 saw the restart with Eckes in P9. Within two laps, he gained one more position. He worked his way around Ty Majeski and was informed that he ran the best lap on track.

Lap 26 saw him in a door-to-door battle with Tanner Gray, which he won and claimed P6. Within two more laps, he worked his way around Ross Chastain and stole P5.

And the stage came to a close, Eckes was closing in on Christopher Bell, eventually passing him for P4.

After that, there was a 1.5-second gap between his truck P3.  Eckes made light work of the gap and passed Carson Hocevar for the spot with nine to go.

He quickly radioed in, “Pretty good right here.”

That he was.

He was told in return to take care of his truck and bring it to the stage end.

With four to go, Kaden Honeycutt and Corey Heim were battling ahead of him, and Eckes easily took advantage and put the two trucks in his rearview mirror.

Behind him, Honeycutt and Heim continued to battle, allowing him to build a gap and secure the stage win.

Stage 2

The 2023 Darlington winner was happy with his truck in clean air, and the team agreed to avoid any adjustments and see how things played out for the next run. Following a lengthy stop, he lined up P6 with 37 to go in the stage.

He was told, “Get right back to it. Go get these two.” Before he could do so, the caution waved for debris.

He noted his truck fired off okay, but was worried about damage after contact with Sawalich on the restart.

After much debate over which lane to choose, Eckes was told, “P5. Do what you feel is right.”

Eckes got around Sawalich for P4 and radioed in, “That worked better than I thought it would!” and set his eyes on Majeski.

With 10 to go in the stage, Eckes noted he was “a little free off.”

Honeycutt put a three-second lead on the field, and Eckes maintained P4 until Heim passed him with three to go. Eckes updated and said, “Too tight. Right rear is killed.”

He finished the stage in P5, adding to his points on the day.

Stage 3

He took to the pits under caution and returned to the track in P6 for the final 50 laps.

A slow restart saw him fall to P8, but he regained a spot and settled in. He maintained P7 until the caution waved with 42 to go. Eckes was called to pit road for adjustments. Following a stop that got him off pit road in 10th, he asked what he could do better. Crew chief, David Elenz, said, “It’s in here. We keep getting hung up on the right rear.”

Eckes faced 37 to go from P11. A chaotic restart saw him three-wide and suddenly in P8.

A caution 10 laps later allowed him to gain two more spots. Elenz brought him in for adjustments and got back on track in P6. With 20 to go, Eckes surged ahead and was in a battle with Heim. After some beating and banging, he was worried about the right front.

Over the next few laps, Eckes had a mirror full of Honeycutt. The No. 11 rode his bumper until he could make a move. That move pushed Eckes to P4 with 11 to go.

With four to go, the caution waved as Hocevar went spinning. The No. 91 team went to work discussing options given the change in circumstances.

NASCAR Overtime

At the last second, Elenz decided to stay on track for NASCAR Overtime.

Eckes lined up P3 directly behind race leader Ross Chastain. He gave Chastain a hard push on the start, but behind him, the field stacked up, and trucks were spinning in every direction.

After the lengthy cleanup, Eckes was still in P3, once again lined up behind Chastain for another attempt at the finish. Eckes gave another hard push to Chastain and fell in behind him for P2.

Coming out of Turn 1, Heim suckerpunched Eckes on his way to the front. This punted Eckes to P3.

After a door-to-door battle with Honeycutt, he brought it home P3 and noted he was happy about the “improvement,” not only on the night but the season.

Sponsor Shout-out + Social Round-up

NASCAR fans know sponsors make the sport go ’round. We want to give a shout-out to Adaptive One Calipers. They played a huge part in the weekend for the No. 91 team.

Be sure to give Christian Eckes (Facebook, Instagram, X) and McAnally Hilgemann Racing (Facebook, Instagram, X) a follow to keep up with the latest news from the driver and team.