Child prodigies in the world of NASCAR are well-heard of. Kyle Busch won a race at age 17, and Joey Logano also beat veteran racers at the tender age of 18. Another such young prodigy is rising under the aegis of Joe Gibbs. William Sawalich is the current ARCA Menards star. He secured his fifth win of the 2024 ARCA season this past weekend in Minnesota.

The 17-year-old racer is not yet eligible to race on the largest tracks on the schedule. However, Sawalich is not leaving any stone unturned; he is competing in every track he can. That includes the upcoming Craftsman Truck Series race at Richmond Raceway.

William Sawalich is set to wow NASCAR again

The young speedster grew up racing Quarter Midgets and Legend cars and found early success there. But William Sawalich has already made a quick and brilliant transition to stock cars, switching first in 2022. He earned 14 victories across multiple series before joining Joe Gibbs Racing in 2023. Then in 2023, he struck gold – Sawalich won the ARCA Menards Series East championship, driving the JGR No. 18 Toyota Camry. This excellent portfolio is bound to send the teenager places.

After making six starts in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series last year, William Sawalich is set to return. Driving the No. 1 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro under TRICON Garage, he already appeared in Indianapolis. Richmond Raceway is calling the talented racer. Sawalich was super excited to race trucks last season: “I am excited to be back with the No. 1 team in 2024. We were super consistent this past season and I am looking forward to repeating that with my group of guys. I am confident it will be another successful year with TRICON.”

With a rainy forecast over a D-shaped short track, it is going to be a challenge for William Sawalich. However, the racer’s resume gives enough reassurance that he can soar to victory in no time. On his way to the 2023 ARCA championship, Sawalich won four out of eight races, besides clinching top-fives in all eight. He further dazzled Joe Gibbs by leading a series-high 758 of 1,388 laps. He took the title by 53 points over second-place Luke Fenhaus.

This year as well, William Sawalich looks poised for consecutive championship glory as he leads the points board. His most recent win was spectacular, given that he emerged from a daunting situation.

Sawalich controlled his fortune

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Usually, drivers lose hope once a mishap cripples their progress mid-race. But young William Sawalich is made of something else. Racing in front of his hometown crowd, he overcame a big challenge at the Shore Lunch 250 race at Elko Speedway. Sawalich started from the pole and advanced steadily until contact with Micahel Maples on lap 149 sent him spinning around laps 1 and 2. Then Lavar Scott snatched the race lead as Sawalich fell to eighth.

Then it was all about team strategy. The team made repairs and adjustments on the scheduled break on lap 175, and set up Sawalich or what would turn out to be an incredible three-wide finish at the 0.375-mile oval. He got to the finish line first by 0.011 seconds ahead of Lavar Scott. The racer credited his team for the surge to Victory Lane. “I just went really loose all of a sudden, I think from the left-rear (tire) going down. I just lost a lot of rear grip. I was a little worried there. I trusted my team enough. I knew we were good enough.”

Evidently, William Sawalich has remarkable speed that spells a bright future in the upper tiers of NASCAR. Soon after he turns 18 in October, he already has Xfinity races lined up under Joe Gibbs Racing.