Christian Eckes Finishes 17th at Martinsville in the SiriusXM Tundra

Christian Eckes finished 17th at Martinsville Speedway on Saturday, after earning his third-career pole and battling for the lead late in the race. On Friday, Eckes was fastest in first practice and 19th-fastest in the final Gander Trucks practice session. On Saturday morning in one round of single vehicle qualifying, the No. 51 SiriusXM team earned the pole with a lap of 19.944 seconds and 95.424 mph.
 
Eckes spent most of the day in the top-10, and was battling for the lead amidst several late-race restarts, when he was roughed up and shuffled back in the pack. As he was making his way forward again, he was caught up in a wreck in the final laps, ultimately finishing 17th.
 
Stage One Recap:
  • Eckes earned his third pole of the 2019 season in one round of single-vehicle qualifying.
  • On the start, the young driver fell to second and reported that his Tundra was fighting a tight handling condition.
  • Eckes finished the first stage in second, and crew chief Rudy Fugle decided to keep him on track during the stage break.
Stage Two Recap:
  • Eckes started the second stage in second position.
  • Under caution on lap 80, Fugle called Eckes to pit road for four tires and fuel.
  • Following the pit stop, Eckes restarted in sixth, and he finished the stage in fifth.
Stage Three Recap:
  • Eckes began the final stage in fifth.
  • The talented teenager remained in the top-five and largely damage-free through multiple cautions in the final stage.
  • With 65 laps remaining, Eckes restarted in the second position. He continued to battle for the lead until lap 160, when he was roughed up and shuffled back in the pack slightly.
  • On the final green-white-checkered restart, the No. 51 was collected in an incident and crossed the finish line in 17th.

KBM PR