William Sawalich edged out Christian Eckes and Alon Day in a dramatic three-wide finish to win the General Tire 200 ARCA Menards Series West race Friday at Sonoma Raceway, securing his first victory of the 2025 season.
Sawalich, who competes full-time in the Xfinity Series with Joe Gibbs Racing, now has four wins as an ARCA West driver.
“That was definitely our race,” said Sawalich. “It just sucks that it had to happen that way. We did what we could to get our car into Victory Lane.”
The 50-lap race on the 2.52-mile road concluded with Sawalich holding off a strong challenge from Eckes, making his series debut with Bill McAnally Racing, and road-course specialist Day. The trio crossed the finish line separated by mere inches with Sawalich edging out Eckes by 0.067 seconds.
Sawalich, also the pole winner, led all 50 laps, though three lead changes marked the final lap.
Eckes came all the way back into the mix after finding himself at the rear or a pack after a mid-race spinout. Eckes and Sawalich traded a handful of bumps throughout the 12-turn circuit on the last lap and continued the physicality into the final split second. Sawalich even bumped into the wall in the final feet into the finish line but still managed to outlast a charging Eckes
Trevor Huddleston, the points leader entering the event, finished fourth, followed by Tyler Reif in fifth. Eric Nascimento, Corey Day, Kyle Keller, Tanner Reif and Jeff Anton rounded out the top 10.
The race featured a scheduled caution near lap 32, allowing teams to strategize under modified live pitting rules, which prohibited fuel additions before lap 20 and restricted tire changes to emergencies. Sawalich capitalized on a strong restart after the caution to maintain his lead.
Kaylee Bryson (14th) impressed in her stock car debut and Spencer Gallagher (18th) returned to competition with Sigma Performance Services.
Tickets for the Sonoma Raceway NASCAR weekend are on sale now at SonomaRaceway.com or by calling (800) 870-RACE [7223]. Three-day weekend packages for adults start at just $130, and kids 12 and under are only $10. Tickets for Sunday's Toyota/Save Mart 350 can also be purchased at the lowest available price at local Save Mart, Lucky California or FoodMaxx stores. For further details, please visit the Sonoma Raceway website. Camping, upgrades, premium options and much more are all available at SonomaRaceway.com or by calling (800) 870-RACE [7223].
