NASCAR Made One Thing Perfectly Clear By Not Penalizing Sawalich

Did NASCAR just give Brad Keselowski the green light to retaliate against Carson Hocevar due to the decision to not penalize William Sawalich after Gateway?

Sep 5, 2026; Darlington, South Carolina, USA; Joe Gibbs Racing driver William Sawalich (18) pulls alongside Hendrick Motorsports driver Corey Day (17) during a caution after the two collided during the Fleetio 200 at Darlington Raceway. Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

NASCAR's anticipated penalty report came and went this week without even a hint of a punishment for William Sawalich, who took a swipe at Corey Day, one of the 12 drivers battling for the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series championship, which sent Day crashing out of last Saturday night's event at World Wide Technology Raceway.

Sawalich and Day have had a series of run-ins this season, and after an issue at Darlington led to a heated post-race conversation between the two drivers, Sawalich seemingly was looking to settle a score at World Wide Technology Raceway.

When the two got together in a battle for position on Lap 134, Sawalich lost his cool and side-slammed Day. This turned Day's No. 17 car to the left, and he collided with Justin Allgaier, another championship contender, which sent him spinning hard into the inside wall.

William Sawalich and Corey Day are at it again. pic.twitter.com/CZ8MIPhPHD

— The CW Sports (@TheCW_Sports) September 13, 2026

By choosing not to penalize Sawalich, NASCAR, the sanctioning body, has made one thing perfectly clear: payback is once again on the table in the NASCAR National Series, and it seems that the drivers will be trusted to self-police things on the track again.

This ruling, or lack thereof, adds a new layer of intrigue to the Brad Keselowski/Carson Hocevar feud.

Heading into last weekend's Enjoy Illinois 300 at Gateway, everyone and their mother expected Keselowski to exact his revenge on Hocevar, who had spun him out a week prior in Darlington Raceway.

After climbing from his No. 6 car at Darlington, Keselowski proclaimed that Hocevar's "day is coming, and it's coming hard. Watch out, Carson."

To which Hocevar responded, "I'll keep my belts tight."

But with Hocevar competing in the NASCAR Cup Series Chase for the Championship, many expected severe sanctions if Keselowski were to make good on his threat to send a message to Hocevar, one of the most aggressive drivers in NASCAR's top division, currently.

Another factor that led people to believe there would be stiff penalties stemming from a retaliatory shot from Keselowski onto Hocevar was the penalties sustained by Ryan Preece for an incident with Ty Gibbs at Texas Motor Speedway earlier this season.

Following that particular incident, which sent Gibbs spinning into the outside wall, Preece was docked 25 championship points, which made his path to a Chase berth a nail-biting experience down to the final race of the regular season at Daytona International Speedway, a race that Preece ultimately won.

Several months later, the Preece penalty now seems like it was an outlier, or that NASCAR has since chosen to calm its stance on payback moves in the NASCAR National Series ranks. And by not penalizing Sawalich after Saturday night's Nu Way 225, NASCAR may have intentionally or inadvertently given Keselowski the green light to exact the most anticipated retaliation in recent NASCAR memory.

Now, the question is: Will Keselowski take the opportunity?

This weekend, the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Bristol Motor Speedway for the Bass Pro Shops Night Race, an iconic event known for bumping, banging, rooting, and gouging. If there were ever a place to settle a score, the 0.533-mile high-banked concrete oval in Tennessee would for sure be the place to do it.

Get your popcorn ready, folks. Saturday night could be must-see television.