Katherine Legge (44) gears up near her car. Jenna Watson/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

Katherine Legge says she was 'taken out by' William Sawalich in Rockingham crash

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Apr 19, 2025 7:03 PM ET

Katherine Legge was understandably frustrated after an early crash took her out of Saturday's NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Rockingham Speedway.

Contact from William Sawalich sent Legge, who was being lapped, hard into the outside wall on Lap 53, ending her first Xfinity Series start of 2025 prematurely.

It's the second time in 2025 that a debut in one of NASCAR's top-three series has gone awry for Legge, who also crashed out of her NASCAR Cup Series debut at Phoenix Raceway on Mar. 9.

"Bit unlucky, there was not much I could do," Legge said. "I just got taken out by (William) Sawalich. It is what it is in that situation."

A frustrated Katherine Legge after the wreck put her out. She said she was giving people the inside line. ⁦@NASCARONFOX⁩ pic.twitter.com/Ffe2Oi7q6v
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) April 19, 2025

"I'd given the inside lane to whoever had just gone past me," the 44-year-old from Guildford, England, explained. "I thought we were going to finish the corner, but he (Sawalich) just moved up the racetrack and understeered right into my left-rear."

Legge jumped into the Joey Gase Racing No. 53 car after failing to qualify for the race in Jordan Anderson Racing's No. 32 entry. Saturday's race was her first Xfinity Series start since 2023. Legge is scheduled to make six more Xfinity Series starts in 2025, including the April 26 race at Talladega Superspeedway.

"I was settling in and we were doing great," Legge said. "When you get taken out and get hit like that, there's nothing you can do."

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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