Christian Eckes kept his cool on his way to scoring a career-best finish in Saturday’s Explore The Pocono Mountains 250 at Pocono Raceway. (Photo Credit: Holden Barnes | The Podium Finish)
LONG POND, Pa. — It’s safe to say that Christian Eckes was in the game for the entirety of Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Explore The Pocono Mountains 250, as Eckes collected a career-best finish of third after fighting an caution-filled frenzy throughout the afternoon.
Eckes, driving the No. 16 Chevrolet, started 15th on the grid but quickly made his way through the field. The race featured a record 10 cautions and nine lead changes, but the 22-year-old maintained his composure and steadily climbed into contention. In the final stage, he ran in the top five and held his position against experienced competitors, ultimately finishing just 1.132 seconds behind race winner Connor Zilisch.
Eckes consistently earned double-digit stage points, finishing fifth in both 25-lap stages.
The Middletown, New York native took flight throughout the final stage, maintaining inside the position, working his way up to the front to fight for the race lead with the JR Motorsports duo of Zilisch and Justin Allgaier, as well as the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion of Chase Elliott.
A final restart with 12 laps remaining saw him battle Elliott and Jesse Love for third, as he held off Elliott over the closing laps to lock in his first career Xfinity podium on an oval.
Christian Eckes ran inside the top 5 for the majority of the day, stacking stage points as well as carrying momentum for the final 10-race stretch of the Xfinity Series regular season. (Photo Credit: Declan Wayman | The Podium Finish)
The finish also came at a track known for its unique challenges. Pocono Raceway, the 2.5-mile triangular “Tricky Triangle,” demands precision and strategy. Eckes showed maturity beyond his years in managing tire wear and track position through restarts and green-flag runs.
“Track position was valuable,” Eckes told The Podium Finish. “The 16 (Kaulig Racing) team did a great job of getting the car way better from practice and qualifying into the race because we were struggling. Just overall proud of our finish today.”
Eckes found himself restarting on the front row late, as he battled two fellow young drivers, as well as two seasoned veterans with a strong resume of wins and championships in the Xfinity Series.
“I thought that we could win the race on that restart. On that last restart, it didn’t go our way, and that’s just how it goes sometimes. We expected to be contending right off the bat, which was maybe a little unrealistic. The cars are getting way better, which is helping me. And I’m learning how to manage these races better.”
Eckes continues his claw back into the fight for the playoff hunt, as 10 races remain in the regular season, the rookie driver sits 15th in the driver standings, 55 points below the provisional playoff cutline heading into the upcoming night race at the newly dubbed EchoPark Speedway.
Coverage of the event will take place on Friday, June 27, on The CW at 7:30 p.m. ET. Radio coverage will be broadcast on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.
