Race Information
Venue: Martinsville Speedway
Events: Black’s Tire 200 Presented by Down East Heating & Air Conditioning
Date: Friday, October 30
Location: Ridgeway, VA
Track Description: 0.526-mile oval
Distance: 200 laps / 105.2 miles (6:00 p.m. ET – FOX Sports 1, Motor Racing Network, SiriusXM)
Eckes Ticks Toward Third Clock at Martinsville
Going for the Hat Trick … Christian Eckes is shooting for a hat trick on Friday evening at Martinsville Speedway and he pursues his third grandfather clock. MHR has held a stranglehold on the 0.526-mile bullring with three victories over the last two seasons, and the driver of the No. 91 NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet Silverado RST hopes to regain his previous Martinsville magic. In 2024, Eckes was dominant and nearly untouchable in the two NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks Series (NCTS) events, completing the season sweep and led 320 total laps. He will need a similar performance on Friday night to regain a podium position in the NCTS championship standings.
Short Track Ace … Throughout his tenure with MHR since 2023, Eckes has been a certified short track ace. The New Yorker has three short track victories on his resume, two at the “Paperclip” and one at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2024. He has recorded top-five results at all five short tracks currently on the NCTS and has tallied three top-five’s this year on tracks shorter than one mile. Since joining MHR, Eckes has been exemplary on short tracks with three wins, 11 top-five’s, and 12 top 10 finishes in 18 races. With three top-two finishes in the last four races and returning to one of his most successful sites on the tour, Eckes is sure to be one of the prominent contenders on Friday night.
Season to Date … As the NCTS tour enters Martinsville for the penultimate race of 2026, Eckes sits fifth in the Chase standings, only three markers out of third. After 23 completed races, he has earned nine top-five’s and 14 top-10 finishes with 175 laps led, three stage wins, and a 12.7 average finish.
Tune In … FOX Sports 2 kicks off coverage from Martinsville at 12:30 p.m. ET on Friday afternoon with practice and qualifying, followed by the green flag at 6:00 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1. Stay connected with the No. 91 NAPA Auto Care team by following @BMR_NASCAR on Twitter, @bmr_nascar on Instagram, and Bill McAnally Racing on Facebook.
Christian Eckes Quote:
On returning to Martinsville:
“We always look forward to Martinsville. It’s been a good place for us, obviously, with a couple of wins. Our NAPA Auto Care team wants to get back to victory lane. That’s the priority for us in these last two races, and hopefully we can get back into the top-three in points too, if not higher. We’ve had a good package at Martinsville, and MHR as a whole with Hemric and Ankrum finishing one-two last year. It tends to get chaotic after halfway, but we’ve been on top of the pit strategy in years past to be the lead truck on strategy and have track position at the end. If we can make the right decisions and adjustments throughout the day, I think we can put ourselves in position for another one on Friday.”
Christian Eckes 2026 NCTS Stats
Starts: 23
Poles: 0
Wins: 0
Top-5’s: 9
Top-10’s: 14
Average Finish: 12.7
Laps Led: 175
Stage Wins: 3
Points Position: 5th
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