He may be a rookie, but William Sawalich raced liked a veteran during Saturday’s ARCA Menards Series East opener at Five Flags Speedway, leading all 200 laps for his first career win, also in his first career start.
A multiple time winner in the late model ranks, Sawalich accomplished everything throughout the weekend, from earning the quickest time in practice, winning the pole, and leading every lap in his first career start, becoming the first driver to do so.
“I can’t thank this Joe Gibbs Racing team enough,” Sawalich stated. “We had a really fast Toyota Camry here and the team worked hard to make this car as good as it [was].”
Luke Fenhaus, the 2021 Slinger Nationals winner, would finish in the second position with the newly formed Pinnacle Racing Group, after running in the top three throughout the entire race.
“Potential is a big word,” Fenhaus stated. “We’ve been getting [cars] ready for the season for the last couple of months. It’s good to come in second but it’s hard to be that close [to a victory]. These guys worked so hard and I’m proud of the effort. We’ll keep learning and move on.”
Jake Finch, driving for Venturini Motorsports, would round out the top three, with his teammate Sean Hingorani, and Rev Racing driver Lavar Scott rounding out the top five. Tyler Reif, Zachary Tinkle, Tanner Arms, R. J. Smotherman, and Ed Pompa would round out the top ten.
The second race of the ARCA Menards Series East season will take place at Dover Motor Speedway on 28 April.
2023 Pensacola 200 Race Results
| Pos. | Grid | No. | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status |
| 1 | 1 | 18 | William Sawalich | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 200 | 200 | Running |
| 2 | 3 | 28 | Luke Fenhaus | Pinnacle Racing Group | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Running |
| 3 | 2 | 20 | Jake Finch | Venturini Motorsports | Toyota | 200 | 0 | Running |
| 4 | 6 | 15 | Sean Hingorani | Venturini Motorsports | Toyota | 200 | 0 | Running |
| 5 | 5 | 6 | Lavar Scott | Rev Racing | Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Running |
| 6 | 4 | 41 | Tyler Reif | Lowden Jackson Motorsports | Ford | 198 | 0 | Running |
| 7 | 9 | 11 | Zachary Tinkle | Fast Track Racing | Toyota | 194 | 0 | Running |
| 8 | 7 | 95 | Tanner Arms | MAN Motorsports | Toyota | 193 | 0 | Running |
| 9 | 8 | 46 | R. J. Smotherman | Lowden Jackson Motorsports | Ford | 193 | 0 | Running |
| 10 | 11 | 10 | Ed Pompa | Fast Track Racing | Ford | 187 | 0 | Running |
| 11 | 10 | 12 | Tim Monroe | Fast Track Racing | Toyota | 37 | 0 | DNF |
| 12 | 12 | 01 | Dallas Frueh | Fast Track Racing | Ford | 22 | 0 | DNF |
| 13 | 14 | 06 | Nate Moeller | Wayne Peterson Motorsports | Toyota | 3 | 0 | DNF |
| 14 | 15 | 98 | Dale Shearer | Shearer Speed Racing | Toyota | 0 | 0 | DNS |
| 15 | 13 | 31 | Rita Goulet | Rise Motorsports | Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | DNS |
