Christian Eckes Doubles Down at Gateway Motorsports Park
Concord, North Carolina (June 19, 2018) – Less than one week after making his successful NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) debut driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM), Christian Eckes returns to the track for a pair of races at Gateway Motorsports Park.
On Friday, June 22, the 17-year old Toyota driver will reunite with his Venturini Motorsports team to pilot the No.15 JBL Audio Camry during the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards running of the PapaNicholas Coffee 150.
The day after competing in ARCA’s 120-lap event at Gateway, Eckes will hop back into his KBM prepared Mobil 1 Tundra for his second truck series start in as many weeks. Eckes, who’s coming off an eighth-place finish during his first NCWTS start discusses his excitement along with the challenges of running back-to-back races.
“I’m really looking forward to running the double at Gateway,” said Eckes. “It’s an exciting challenge for sure. I’ve really become comfortable in the ARCA car but pretty new at this truck deal – so there’s still a ton to learn.”
“More than anything else I think the biggest challenge could be the air temperatures. The St. Louis area gets really hot this time of year – they hit triple digits last week. It can get really uncomfortable sitting in the car at those temperatures. Sounds like a small deal but keeping hydrated will be important – especially come Saturday night.”
A member of Toyota Racing’s TD2 Development program, Eckes has accumulated a strong tally sheet since joining VMS’ program in 2015. Competing in 18 ARCA events since his series debut, Eckes has led 348-laps, earned one victory and has collected five top-5 and 12 top-10 finishes.
The ARCA race at Gateway Motorsports Park will mark the half-way point of the 2018 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards season. It also marks ARCA’s return to the 1.25-mile oval for the first time since 2007. For the NASCAR Truck Series, the June 23 event will also be race 10 on the season.
Follow Christian Eckes on social media by visiting @ChristianEckes on Twitter and Instagram, @ChristianEckesRacing on Facebook or visit his official website at www.ChristianEckesRacing.com.
Friday’s ARCA Series race from Gateway will air live on FOX SPORTS 2 (FS2) beginning at 9:00 PM EST. Saturday’s NASCAR Truck Series race will air live on FOX SPORTS 1 at 8:30 PM EST.
ABOUT VENTURINI MOTORSPORTS:
Over the last 35-years, Venturini Motorsports (VMS) has evolved into one of the most recognizable names in professional motorsports. Known for long-time dominance in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards, Venturini Motorsports is held in high regard as one of the premier NASCAR driver development programs in the county. Since 2007, VMS has specialized in the career development of some of today’s top racing talent including current NASCAR “Stars” – Joey Logano, Erik Jones, William Byron, Alex Bowman, Ryan Blaney, Darryl ‘Bubba’ Wallace Jr., Daniel Suarez, Christopher Bell, Justin Allgaier, Noah Gragson, Ben Rhoads, Ryan Reed, Brandon Jones, Matt Tifft, Brennan Poole, Dalton Sargeant, Justin Haley and Todd Gilliland. Integrity, dedication and continuous innovation paired with years of on-track success has helped define Venturini Motorsports as one of the longest-tenured teams in all of modern day racing. In 2012, the Venturini racing family was recognized for their collective achievements and inducted into the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame (www.NIASHF.org) – now finding themselves enshrined with such sports icons as Joe DiMaggio, Mario Andretti, Chip Ganassi, Andy Granatelli, Vince Lombardi, Tommy Lasorda and Rocky Marciano.
Official: www.VenturiniMotorsports.com | Twitter: @VenturiniMotor | Facebook: Venturini Motorsports
Sources: Venturini Motorsports PR