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Saturday's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race saw McAnally-Hilgemann Racing's Christian Eckes take a trip to Victory Lane at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The 22-year-old driver from Middletown, New York, drove his #19 Chevrolet Silverado to a P1 finish in what was considered a race plagued with wrecks and caution flags. FR8 208 saw Eckes battle on track with Nick Sanchez during overtime after a wreck involving Carson Hocevar put the field under caution for the final time.
Christian Eckes briefly lost the lead to Sanchez before taking it back in time as the field wrecked once again, leading to the race finishing under yellows. In a race that saw the 22-year-old clinch his second victory in NASCAR, as well as his first of the season, Eckes proved to be settling into his new team well enough after making the switch from ThorSport Racing last offseason.
Now locked into the 2023 playoffs in the Truck Series, Eckes was also seen confident in previewing his upcoming season, as seen in a video shared by Atlanta Motor Speedway's official handle. Eckes said in the video:
"What I came to McAnally-Hilgemann Racing to do and it was kind of an up-and-down day but we got the win at the end and that's all that matters. Locked in the playoffs, first for MHR and we're just getting started. Huge thanks to everybody involved and like I said, this is just the beginning of what's to come."
Christian Eckes elaborates on how the switch from ThorSport Racing to McAnally-Hilgemann Racing went over the off-season
After the 2022 season of the Truck Series came to an end, Middletown, New York native Christian Eckes was busy switching teams during the off-season instead of winding down like most other drivers were. The 22-year-old elaborated on how the process went ahead of the 2023 race season in an interview after his recent victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and said:
“There’s a lot of thoughts for sure. It was a tough offseason, I’m driving as hard as I ever have, have a lot to prove to the people who know who they are. Just really happy. Thanks to this team, they work so damn hard and this is what makes it all worth it. I’m pumped. This is going to be a really good year.”
Watch Christian Eckes take on The Circuit of the Americas next weekend as the sport heads to the Austin, Texas track for the first road course of the 2023 season.
