If there was a Rookie of the Year award for the Coughlin family, Clay Coughlin would be the hands-down winner for 2012.

The youngest son of multi-time drag racing champion Mike Coughlin, Clay scored a victory in his first season driving the JEGS.com Junior Dragster. That the win came not long after he turned 8 years old – and thereby eligible to race – is all the more impressive.

Clay learned a lot in his first year behind the wheel of the JEGS.com dragster, including the art of finish-line driving that is prevalent in bracket racing. His dad learned a lot as crew chief, too, guiding Clay in the intricacies of drag racing.

Clay returns to the JEGS.com Junior Dragster for 2013, along with crew members Greg Cody, Tom Stillwell, Matt Flowers and Jim Daddus of American Race Cars.