The Olympics break at NASCAR has begun, but that doesn’t mean racing is on a break. Because wow, what a race at Salem Speedway! And if there’s one name that echoed throughout the race, it’s William Sawalich. The Joe Gibbs driver was dominant from the get-go. How dominant, you ask? He recorded the fastest time in practice, then went on to win the pole, and then in the race itself, he did nothing but perform spectacularly — his car was a rocket ship!

William Sawalich shines with a wire-to-wire victory at Salem

William Sawalich was a force to be reckoned with from the very start. He secured the pole and then it was smooth sailing, or rather, smooth racing from there! He led every lap from start to finish. This marks the third consecutive year of drivers dominating in this fashion at Salem. Before Sawalich, it was Jesse Love and Sammy Smith who delivered similarly dominant performances.

The Joe Gibbs driver, with this win, clenched his fourth victory of the 2024 ARCA Menards Series season. Although his performance this year is stellar, it has been slightly more challenging for Sawalich to get those wins than his rookie year, which saw him claim the ARCA Menards Series East title. This year, Connor Zilisch has been giving him a challenging time. And Sawalich had to watch his fierce competitor win at Dover, Iowa, and Lucas Oil. 

With a wire-to-wire win at Salem, William Sawalich asserted his dominance and showed everyone that he was not someone to be trifled with! However, the race at Salem was not without its challenges, and he had to survive multiple restarts throughout. Nevertheless, no one could touch the No. 18 car in the end, as it was the fastest. After the race, he went on to credit others who helped him achieve this wire-to-wire victory

Sawalich said, “My Joe Gibbs Racing team really brought me a fast Toyota Camry tonight. I can’t thank them enough for all their hard work. We had a really, really good car tonight. Honestly, there aren’t too many complaints from me. It’s really easy for me as a driver on nights like this.”

It was Sawalich’s second visit to Salem, and he clinched the trophy, marking the JGR’s second win at the 0.555-mile short track in the past three years. With a performance as stellar as this, we can only expect more from him. However, it is expected that Connor Zilisch will give him a run for his money. 

Is Connor Zilisch the next big thing in NASCAR?

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In NASCAR it’s not uncommon to see young drivers being hyped as “the next big thing.” But not everyone is a Chase Elliott or a Kyle Larson. While some drivers live up to the hype, some just fall short. Right now, Connor Zilisch is the one riding on the waves. He recently turned 18 and is fast becoming one of the most talked about young talents. His career spurt has been nothing but stellar and his last standout performance in his Truck Series debut at the Circuit of The Americas just added more merit to his resume. Moreover, he has various accolades, like a Rolex 24 class win and the 2020 CIK-FIA Karting Academy Trophy.

Now that he is eligible to compete across NASCAR’s top levels, he is waiting for his Xfinity debut at Watkin Glen. He will be driving for JR Motorsports, and as the team itself is known to nurture fresh new talent, his potential will surely be sharpened there. For sure, all eyes will be on him, trying to figure out whether he has what it takes to be a potential future star.

But that’s not to say he doesn’t have competition or is the sole star in the sky or, well, NASCAR! There is Corey Day and Brent Crews, who are both stellar in their own ways. Corey Day has excelled in the dirt sprint cars and even caught the eye of Kyle Larson. Brent Crew is just 16, and he won the Trans-Am SpeedTour All-Star Race with Andy Lally at Lime Rock Park. 

Connor Zilisch isn’t the only one versatile in dirt, road racing, and late models—Crews is too. Plus, he’s already got an ARCA win. So while Zilisch is definitely one of the best, just like Sawalich, he too has competition.