The Olympic break is over, and tides are surging already at Richmond Raceway. What appeared to be a sleepy start to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race on the 0.75-mile short track has already thrilled race fans. A resurgent driver has further proven his mettle—Christian Eckes was on a thunderous streak already, and now his consistent pace has finally paid off. In the meantime, a Truck Series veteran is wallowing in misery.

Christian Eckes picks up the first title

The McAnally-Hilgemann Racing driver was off to a fiery start. The No. 19 Chevrolet picked up the pole for the Worldwide Express 250 race a few hours earlier and turned a time of 22.755 seconds to outrun Ty Majeski’s No. 98 Ford for the top spot, clinching his third pole of the season. Before soaring back to Richmond, Eckes has had a fabulous season, holding three wins and nine top-fives. Now he can sigh in relief, as Christian Eckes has clinched the regular season championship.

The No. 19 dominated most of the first stage, the only thorn in his side being Ty Majeski, who took the lead a few times. Eventually, Christian Eckes fetched his eighth stage win and cemented his position as the regular series champion.

Bob Pockrass updated on X, “Christian Eckes has clinched the regular-season championship… Taylor Gray has clinched a spot in the playoffs …. and the Spire No. 7 team has clinched a spot in the owners playoffs.”

In the meantime, 3-time Craftsman Truck champion Matt Crafton is lagging in the rear. The veteran driver owned only one top-five this season, and his Richmond showing is not turning out to be spectacular either. Crafton is a long way away from his 2019 championship, as he sits at 13th in the point standings with no hope of entering the playoffs. Pockrass also commented on his miserable situation, “Crafton and Purdy now can’t point their way in — was a long, long shot anyway to do so.”

Well, now we can only wait and watch who clinches the Richmond victory. Will it be Crafton, who already lost his chance, or Eckes, who would simply be adding more glitter to his crown?