Sawalich to start on pole for first time in Xfinity career
AVONDALE, Ariz. — Minnesota’s William Sawalich will start on the pole for Saturday night’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Phoenix Raceway.
Sawalich will lead the field to his third green flag in the Xfinity Series. The Minnesotan put on a clinic in qualifying, besting Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Sheldon Creed by 0.148 seconds. Creed will start on the front row with him, still seeking his first Xfinity Series win.
Just 18 years old as of a few weeks ago, Sawalich started 12th and 15th in his first two Xfinity Series opportunities, at Homestead-Miami Speedway and Martinsville Speedway respectively. He finished 24th and 33rd, respectively, in those starts after running into issues.
MORE: William Sawalich on the rise with Minnesota pride
In fifth, Austin Hill is the highest-starting Championship 4 driver. Then, it’s Cole Custer in seventh, A.J. Allmendinger in ninth and Justin Allgaier in 37th. Allgaier didn’t qualify after his crash in practice with owner Championship 4 contender Aric Almirola, who will start 36th.
Allmendinger will join them in the rear of the field after his team changed the brakes on his car after qualifying.
See the full lineup and all the info to know for Saturday night’s championship race here:
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com