As the World of Outlaws Late Model series invaded The Dirt Track at Charlotte Thursday night for World Finals weekend, fourteen points separated Rick Eckert and Josh Richards. After Friday night’s preliminary race, Richards shortened that gap, putting himself only two points behind Eckert, and on the path to earning his third championship in a row.

Saturday night, neither Richards or Eckert were a factor for the win, but the two battled mid-pack for the entire 50-lap A-main event. Richards had pulled ahead a few positions, and it looked as though he was going to repeat for a third time. However, a last lap problem for Richards allowed Eckert to pull ahead at the very end of the race to secure the first championship of his career. Check out this video taken from the stands as Richards shreds a tire coming to the white flag.

At the banquet, Richards was quick to congratulate Eckert on his well deserved championship. Although Richards came in second in the championship standings, he was emotional as he told the series how much he would miss them all as he moves on to the NASCAR Camping World Truck series full next season. We here at OneDirt.com wish Josh the very best as he moves on and we hope to see many wins and championships in the future!