Wednesday, December 7, 2016

Eckes Prevails in Snowball Derby Thriller

Eckes Prevails in Snowball Derby Thriller Christian Eckes Crowned Snowball Derby 2016 Champion 

 

Eckes Prevails in Snowball Derby Thriller #snowballderby

A year before reaching its historic milestone, the 49th Snowball Derby was beset with the worst weather in event history. It forced an unprecedented two-day delay with the race, originally scheduled for a Sunday start, to wait until yesterday for the green flag.

However, for winner, sixteen-year-young Christian Eckes, a New York native and JR Motorsports prodigy, the agonizing delay produced elation.

“I can’t even believe I’m standing here right now,” Eckes said in Victory Lane. “I thought our day was over when we had that incident down the backstretch. Man, I just can’t believe this. This is the Snowball Derby and this is just crazy.”

Eckes made an inside move to pass fellow rising star, nineteen-year-old John Hunter Nemechek, exiting Turn four on the second-to-final lap Tuesday. He then won a nose-to-nose duel at the finish line to pull off a stunning victory at Five Flags Speedway.

Eckes Prevails in Snowball Derby Thriller #snowballderby

These two talented drivers switched leads four times the final two whirls around the famed, half-mile oval. Nemecheck won the 2014 Snowball Derby at age of seventeen.

“He made the crossover move pretty much one corner earlier than I did,” Nemechek said. “I should have backed off and held him to the outside and he wouldn’t have got to me. But heck of a race. I can’t thank all the fans enough for coming out on a Tuesday. This is awesome to be able to put on such a close finish for you guys. That’s how you win a race right there. He showed what he could do and rubbin is racing.”

The separation was 0.017 of a second, the closest in Snowball Derby history. The previous blink-of-eye finish was 1998 when five-time Snowball Derby winner Rich Bickle Jr. held off Gary St. Amant. Bickle is the only driver to win it five times.



49th Annual Snowball Derby Official Results

Five Flags Speedway – Pensacola, Florida


Pos
#
Driver
1
15
Christian Eckes
2
8
John Hunter Nemechek
3
91
Ty Majeski
4
2W
Donnie Wilson
5
26S
Chandler Smith
6
7
Casey Roderick
7
82
Grant Enfinger
8
77
Zane Smith
9
5G
Noah Gragson
10
99L
Raphael Lessard
11
26
Bubba Pollard
12
43T
Derek Thorn
13
14C
Connor Okrzesik
14
99
Casey Smith
15
29
Spencer Davis
16
07
Corey LaJoie
17
4D
Dalton Armstrong
18
55
Dalton Sargeant
19
01
Derek Scott, Jr.
20
42
Chad Finley
21
51N
Stephen Nasse
22
9B
William Byron
23
98
Daniel Hemric
24
3
Kaz Grala
25
9K
Derek Kraus
26
97
Cole Anderson
27
112
Augie Grill
28
5
Jerry Artuso
29
9C
Jeff Choquette
30
83
Scotty Ellis
31
14
Chris Davidson
32
51
Christopher Bell
33
11
David Rogers
34
12
Harrison Burton
35
4
Kyle Plott
36
16
Brandon McReynolds

 

Related Posts:

  1. Snowball Derby Set to Start at 5 PM Today
  2. William Byron Takes Pole for 49th Annual Snowball Derby
  3. Rain Delays the Start of the Snowball Derby
  4. The 49th Snowball Derby Past Winners
  5. Short Track Champions and Winners Make Up Deep Snowball Field
  6. 49th Annual Snowball Derby Entry List
  7. 49th Annual Snowball Derby Live


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