The 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Chase opener at Darlington Raceway was memorable for more reasons than just the points impact. Corey Day and William Sawalich were at the center of a long-simmering feud that boiled over both on and off the track.
Things took a turn for the worse on Lap 68, when Sawalich’s No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota GR Supra slammed the wall after contact from Day’s No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro SS. Sawalich slid back the track and turned across Day’s nose. In the ensuing caution Sawalich found Day and door-slammed him multiple times to express his displeasure.
Despite front end damage Corey Day rebounded to finish second, opening his first Chase with a strong points yield. Sawalich, who isn’t in the Chase, wasn’t as fortunate. He finished 30th, 41 laps off the pace. He parked his car after another unrelated incident on Lap 102; Joey Gase spun following contact from Garrett Smithley and Sawalich slammed the inside wall while trying evade.
Reactions
“I’m tired of getting raced that way by him.”👀
Corey Day and William Sawalich tangled on track once again this season. Both drivers shared their thoughts on the continued on-track incidents ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/bumV4IEo8z
— Above The Yellow Line Media (@ATYLmedia) September 6, 2026
After the race, the two drivers shared a tense conversation on pit road to discuss their run-in. It did not appear an amicable resolution was reached. “He told me to go f–k myself,” Day said per Frontstretch. “So I think that’s where we’re at.”
In comments to ATYL Media after the race, William Sawalich explained his frustration. “We’ve had a lot of run-ins through the season and he blamed them all on me,” Sawalich said. “So I don’t really know.”
Corey Day didn’t agree that he rejected blame for earlier incidents between the two drivers. “I just feel like ever since earlier in the year when I’ve gotten into him I’ve apologized, I’ve owned up,” Day said. “He’s just held that grudge for me, always ran me out of room when he can and packed air on me when he can. He’s just done things that he didn’t need to do, but he’s gonna do it just because he can. So I’m over it. It’s Chase time, he’s not in the Chase, so I’m not gonna let him ruin my day.”
Moving Forward
According to The Athletic’s Jordan Bianchi, William Sawalich didn’t stop at telling off Corey Day after Saturday’s race. “He threatened to wreck me,” Day said of Sawalich. “I don’t doubt that he will wreck me, or whatever the case in one of these races where it means, obviously, a lot to me and nothing to him.”
Following the Chase opener at Darlington Raceway, Day is fifth in the standings and 46 points out of the lead. Over the next nine weeks he’ll likely need to be at peak performance to run down points leader Justin Allgier and the other three drivers that stand between him and a championship.
Sawalich, who missed the Chase field by one spot in the standings, does not have a title campaign on the line. If he feels compelled to settle a score before the end of the season, he has the leverage to hit Day harder than Day can possibly hit him.
Tempers flare after the incident. 😡 pic.twitter.com/DZiuTOULXC
— NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts (@NASCAROReillyAP) September 6, 2026
