ThorSport Racing announced that Christian Eckes will be returning to the organization and campaign as a full-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series competitor for the upcoming racing season.
Eckes, a 21-year-old native from Middletown, New York, and the 2019 ARCA Menards Series champion, will be piloting the No. 98 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro and carry sponsorship support from AHI Facility Services, Inc. for the season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway. He will be a teammate to three-time Truck Series champion Matt Crafton and the reigning Truck Series champion Ben Rhodes.
Eckes is coming off a part-time season with ThorSport Racing, where he drove the No. 98 Toyota in nine of the 23-race schedule while sharing the ride with Grant Enfinger. During his stint, Eckes scored his first Truck Series career victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in September during the 2021 Truck Series Playoffs and recorded an additional four top-10 results.
“I am extremely excited to be back with ThorSport Racing and ready to kick the year off at Daytona with AHI Facility Services on the No. 98 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro,” Eckes said. “This is an amazing opportunity and I’m more than ready to show that I belong.”
“We are thrilled to continue our partnership with ThorSport Racing this season,” Todd Haddock, President of AHI Facility Services, Inc., added, “I am excited to see the AHI Facility Services Toyota Tundra TRD Pro hit the track at Daytona with Christian Eckes.”
Prior to ThorSport Racing, Eckes made 35 Truck career starts for Kyle Busch Motorsports from 2018 to 2020. He competed for KBM on a full-time basis in 2020, where he made the 2020 Truck Series Playoffs and finished in eighth place in the final standings.
Through 2021, Eckes has recorded one victory, three poles, 12 top-five results, 23 top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 13.2 in 45 career starts in the Truck Series.
Eckes’ full-time campaign with ThorSport Racing is set to commence at Daytona International Speedway on February 18 with coverage to occur at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.