SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — William Sawalich reached a pivotal career milestone in Sunday’s Springfield ARCA 100 with his first dirt track victory.
Not a dirt racer by trade, Sawalich relied on the strength of his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota and momentum from a stellar 2024 campaign to put together a typically efficient performance at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. Perfect execution from Sawalich on a one-lap shootout at the Springfield Mile enabled him to secure his sixth ARCA Menards Series (national) win of the year.
The final caution being thrown yards from the checkered flag was the only major obstacle of the day for Sawalich, who found himself more comfortable with the unique style of racing at dirt tracks like the Springfield Mile.
“We knew what we had last year, and I felt like we had good speed,” Sawalich said. “I just had to be a little more comfortable with the dirt, which is not my thing. The guys made a really good change at the halfway break to get us a little better for the end.”
Sawalich’s visit to the Springfield Mile in 2023 was the first time he had been on a dirt track in a stock car.
The two dirt races for Sawalich at the Springfield Mile and the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds were relatively quiet outings. He ended up placing fifth in both events, all while gaining valuable dirt track experience to carry over into 2024.
Sawalich arrived at the Springfield Mile exuding the same composure and maturity that netted him seven victories on the ARCA Menards Series platform before Sunday. A General Tire Pole-winning time of 34.009 seconds was all Sawalich needed to maintain control at the front of the field all afternoon.
By leading all 105 laps at the Springfield Mile, Sawalich obtained his second wire-to-wire performance of 2024 and his third while driving for Joe Gibbs Racing. He is only three weeks removed from his other flawless performance at Salem Speedway.
Despite not facing a significant challenge for the lead on Sunday, Sawalich never once considered a victory to be guaranteed. Attrition impacted several other strong cars such as ARCA Menards Series points leader Andres Perez, all while the one-lap shootout left him vulnerable to Perez’s teammate Lavar Scott on a single-file restart.
Knowing Scott would not cut him any breaks following a frantic three-wide photo finish between them and Kris Wright at Elko Speedway, Sawalich remembered the fundamentals that had been instilled into him about dirt racing to ensure another great day would not go to waste.
“The only thing I’ve been told about dirt racing is more throttle means more turn,” Sawalich said. “That’s all I was trying to do, trying to gas it up and getting the rear to turn.”
There are still plenty more milestones for Sawalich to reach in a stock car once he turns 18 in October. For now, Sawalich is content with his accomplishment and is focused on completing a sweep of the ARCA Menards Series dirt races when the schedule reaches DuQuoin in a couple of weeks.
Isabella Robusto and Taylor Reimer came home second and third, respectively, for Venturini Motorsports, while Kelly Kovski and Scott completed the top five.
Rounding out the top 10 were Toni Breidinger, Wright, Amber Balcaen, Christian Rose and Tim Monroe.
ARCA Menards Series competitors will not get much time to rest following a grueling doubleheader weekend. The next venue on the calendar is the historic Milwaukee Mile for the Sprecher 150, which takes place Sunday at 1 p.m. ET and airs live on both FS1 and FloRacing.