Often times you’ve heard NASCAR champions such as Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth talk about a particular race being a championship-esque effort. Joe Gibbs Racing Development Driver Cody Coughlin now knows what that means.
Coughlin, a winner of three of the last four ARCA / CRA Super Series races, overcame all odds to finish on the podium in Saturday’s Bud St. Amant Memorial 125 at Columbus Motor Speedway in Ohio.
The 20 year-old started fourth and quickly moved into the second spot. After contact from another competitor, the JEGS.com No. 1 Toyota Camry spun and Coughlin was forced to restart at the rear of the field. The Ohio native never gave up and fought valiantly to finish third by the conclusion of the 125-laps.
“This is definitely a feather in our cap,” explained Coughlin, who extended his series point lead. “The incident where we spun was just a chain-reaction deal, but we never gave up. The car was tight and we never caught a caution after that long green flag run to finish the race. This is a good finish and we were able to extend our point lead, but we’ve come accustomed to winning and we really want to get back to victory lane again.”
Coughlin’s podium effort keeps a streak of top-10 finishes alive that began when his crew chief Jack Smith joined the team in the spring.
“Jack and the guys are working so hard at getting this car right week-in and week-out,” said Coughlin, who also competes in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for Kyle Busch Motorsports. “Kevin (Hamlin, Team Manager), Scott (Wimmer, Spotter), Dave (Holt, crew-member), Greg (Urbine, crew-member) Cody (Smith, crew-member) and Jack are a big reason why we have been running so well. We missed it just a little bit tonight, but without them, my family (parents, John and Di and sister Kennedi) and the blessings of the Lord, this JEGS.com team would not be where it is at right now.”
Coughlin is currently leading the series standings in both the CRA Super Series and CRA / JEGS All-Stars Tour. His next race is Friday, July 8 in Birch Run, Michigan at Dixie Speedway with the JEGS All-Stars Tour. He won the series most recent event at Salem Speedway in Indiana.
For more information on Cody Coughlin and Team JEGS, visit www.teamjegs.com and follow Cody on Twitter, @Cody_Coughlin. Follow Team JEGS on Twitter, @TeamJEGS, and “Like” JEGS Performance on Facebook. Also be sure to check out Cody’s new website, www.codycoughlin.com. Any other inquiries for Cody Coughlin can be sent to Bob Dillner via email at bd51sports@gmail.com.