William Sawalich led every single lap and survived a late overtime restart to win the ARCA Menards Series race at the Illinois State Fairgrounds for his sixth win of the season.
Sawalich won the pole and had his sixth win of the season in sight before the caution came out for Sean Corr with Sawalich one turn away from victory. He was able to survive the one-lap shootout and took the checkered flag for his third consecutive win.
“We knew what we had last year, and I feel like we had good speed,” Sawalich told FOX Sports. “I just had to be a little bit more comfortable with the dirt, it’s not really my thing.”
Isabella Robusto and Taylor Reimer finished second and third, marking the first time in ARCA history two female drivers finished inside of the top five. Finishing in fourth was Kelly Kovski, while Lavar Scott fell to fifth after restarting second on the final lap.
The remainder of the top 10 finishers saw Toni Breidinger finish sixth, Kris Wright seventh, Amber Balcaen eighth, Christian Rose ninth and Tim Monroe 10th.
As the green flag dropped for the initial start of the race, Sawalich found himself ahead by a few car lengths by the time the field entered turn one. Just as it appeared like Sawalich was going to settle in and pull away from the field, an early caution came out for Brian Clubb, who stalled on the backstretch on lap three.
When the race restarted again, Kovski was able to get a better restart, keeping pace with Sawalich into turn one, before Kovski got a lane too high into turn two. Sawalich was able to pull away, retaining sole possession of the lead once again. Ten laps later, Sawalich was still roughly a second out in front, but it was over Wright, who had gotten around Kovski for second place. However, as the run went on, Wright would begin to reel in Sawalich, but a caution for debris on lap 26 would rack the field up again for a restart.
Under the second caution period, points leader Andres Perez went to the garage with an overheating issue and a hole in the radiator. The damage would end the chances for the Rev Racing driver, who now had to focus on minimizing the points damage in the championship battle.
Sawalich would again pull out to a quick lead after the restart, but Wright was able to keep the gap narrow. Robusto showed strength immediately after this restart as well, gaining two positions up to third in the first two laps after the green flag.
Just as the field was approaching the halfway break caution, Sean Corr blew a tire, prompting a yellow on lap 43. Under this yellow, Wright, who was running second, stalled on track and needed a push to get going again. He lost a lap in the process, which moved him to the 15th position at the time.
Series officials let the field take the green flag prior to the race break, and it was again Sawalich who fired off to the lead. Robusto did lose second place on the restart, allowing Kovski to get by. The green flag run would be short, as the lap 50 race break came two laps later, bringing out the yellow flag once again.
Kovski kept Sawalich as close as he had all race to that point, but the Joe Gibbs Racing driver was able to keep the lead after the restart. Wright again spent more time on pit road after the restart, losing a lap yet again.
The green flag wouldn’t be out for long, however, as Alex Clubb spun in turn one, making heavy contact with the outside wall. The spin brought out another yellow, this time coming on lap 60.
The field came to the green flag once again on lap 64, and Sawalich was in total control. Notably, as the field took the green flag, Perez returned to the racetrack 32 laps down, in an effort to gather a few more points on the day. He was able to rally to a 15th place finish, his worst of the year, but did pass three cars after returning to the track.
Sawalich pulled out to a large lead after a battle for second ensued between four cars with 30 laps to go, and he never looked back. Just as he was coming off of turn 4 to take the checkered flag, Corr went for another spin, bringing out a yellow.
The caution brought a single file, one-lap restart to the end. Sawalich was able to keep the lead, as Robusto and Scott battled for second behind. Despite a Rose wreck into turn three on the white flag, no caution flew, and Sawalich took the checkered flag. It’s his sixth win of the 2024 season, and third straight in the races he’s entered.
ARCA Springfield Results
Next week, ARCA returns in combination with ARCA East, as the series heads to The Milwaukee Mile for the Sprecher 150 on Sunday, Aug. 25. The green flag for that race will fly at 1 p.m. ET, with television coverage provided by FOX Sports 1.
Josh joined Frontstretch in 2023 and currently covers the ARCA Menards Series. Born and raised in Missouri, Josh has been watching motorsports since 2005. He currently is studying for a Mass Communication degree at Lindenwood University
Isabella robusto better be in the car for milwaukee!