What’s Happening?

The fallout from Kaulig Racing closing its NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series team has resulted in a somewhat surprising story of the silly season, with Christian Eckes, who had been viewed as the team’s future, not having a ride for the coming season.

With his standout 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season at McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, to the surprise of a few, Kaulig Racing announced last fall that Christian Eckes would be promoted to full-time status in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for 2025.

Despite a slow start to his time at Kaulig Racing, behind the wheel of their flagship in No. 16, the 24-year-old slowly pieced together a solid rookie season. But that didn’t mean everything was set in stone for a 2026 season with Kaulig.

Following the breakthrough announcement that Kaulig Racing would open a five-entry Craftsman Truck Series program with Ram, rumors began to surface that the team could close its NASCAR Xfinity Series program.

At one point, Kaulig CEO Chris Rice even claimed on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that the team would not leave the Xfinity Series, soon to be renamed the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series. During that interview, Rice claimed Kaulig would instead slim down their program, all while reassuring them that Eckes had a ride for 2026.

However, as the season progressed to Phoenix, it was clear that the team would, in fact, close its program. While Eckes’ teammate Daniel Dye will join Kaulig’s Ram team in 2026, as of press time, Eckes does not have a confirmed ride for the 2026 season.

So, with the off-season well underway, what will the former Truck Series standout do in the coming season?

Stay in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series?

While Eckes would be a top free agent at almost any level of NASCAR, it is clear that spots in NASCAR’s second-highest division are quickly filling up.

For example, spots at Richard Childress Racing, JR Motorsports, and even other non-Chevrolet teams are already filled for the upcoming season. Furthermore, less flashy seats, such as those at Viking Motorsports or the new expansion at Young’s Motorsports, are also filled.

This leaves Eckes in a tough spot, as even though some of the top mid-pack teams, like Alpha Prime Racing and DGM Racing, have open seats, it would still be a step down from Kaulig. However, if he wanted to stay winning, Eckes could take a major step back and maintain his winning reputation.

Return to the Truck Series?

Throughout all the rumors about Eckes’ 2026 plans, one that continues to resurface is a return to the Craftsman Trucks Series.

Although this may be an unusual choice for a driver clearly attempting to climb the ladder in NASCAR, Eckes is a veteran in the series with nine career wins and one of the most impressive non-championship winning single-season efforts in recent memory (2024).

However, this would be a major step back for Eckes, who, despite a young start in the series at age 17, found himself stuck in Truck purgatory, racing for multiple teams as both a full-time and part-time driver for seven seasons.

This becomes all the more disappointing when you factor in his growth with seat time in the series, suggesting that if he had stuck to the NOAPS in 2026, he may have stepped up his game.

Nevertheless, all rumors indicate that Eckes will return to the Craftsman Truck series; the only question is with which team?

What About Ram?

An obvious choice is Ram and Kaulig, much like his former teammate Daniel Dye. But, with Dye alongside Justin Haley and Brendan ‘Butterbean’ Queen, seats are quickly filling up in the Ram camp.

Furthermore, rumors suggest that the final two spots at Ram are already spoken for, with one rumored to be a seat for the winner or winners of a reality TV Show, and the other serving as a rumored “All-Star” truck, similar to the No. 7 fielded by Spire Motorsports.

In fact, rumors have suggested for some time that Eckes could return to McAnally-Hilgemann Racing. Initially, this rumor sparked from an episode of Door Bumper Clear, but since then, other sources, such as Brakehard, have also claimed that Eckes and MHR may be on the verge of reuniting.

Expect Christian Eckes to return to MHR in 2026

— BrakeHard (@BrakeHardBlog) November 6, 2025

Eckes made his way to MHR in 2023 after a few disappointing seasons with the Toyota camp. Following this shakeup, Eckes quickly secured the team’s first win of 2023, ultimately accumulating eight wins in total over the course of two seasons.

Overall, the pair of driver and team was a match made in heaven, and Eckes even raced for MHR part-time this past season, confirming a solid working relationship between the two.

Despite all these rumors, neither the team nor the driver has confirmed a reunion for the coming season, though, as rumors continue to mount, such an announcement could be right around the corner.

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