NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series
NHRA Route 66 Nationals
Route 66 Raceway
Joliet, IL
May 20-23rd
Team JEG’S – Pro Stock
Jeg Coughlin
Pre Race
Jeg Coughlin, Jr is currently in the No. 5 position in the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock championship with 16 races remaining. His best finish so far this season has been a runner up at the Mac Tools Gatornationals.
The 33-year old second generation driver continues to hold the longest active qualifying streak in NHRA’s most competitive professional class. Coughlin has now qualified for 43 straight events. The last race he failed to qualifying at was in 2002 at the first of two races held annually at Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, IL.
“We are going to do some testing in St. Louis on Wednesday and Thursday before heading to Route 66 Raceway,” said Jeg. “Our cars went straight to Jerry Bickel’s (chassis builder) shop after Atlanta to be looked over and have any changes made that need to be. Our biggest obstacle has been getting our cars to consistently go straight from the starting line. We know Jerry and his group are capable of getting us back on track so we can win races. Everyone on our team has been work endless hours to get us back into the winner’s circle.”
Coughlin has a total of 45 career wins and ranks 10th on the all-time NHRA win list. He has won 33 races in Pro Stock, 7 in Super Stock, 4 in Super Gas and 1 in Competition Eliminator. In addition, he won the 1992 NHRA championship in Super Gas and has brought home two professional titles (2000 & 2002) in Pro Stock.
King Demon Crown Preview:
The King Demon Crown event pits the top eight Pro Stock qualifiers from the previous year against one another for a $50,000 top prize. In all, $76,000 will be divvied up amongst the elite eight on race day. This year’s event will be held Saturday, May 22, during the final day of professional qualifying for the seventh annual NHRA Route 66 Nationals.
Racers earn between 175 and 85 points per event depending on what qualifying position they earn. The eight drivers accumulating the most points since the running of last year’s King Demon Crown race, which took place in Englishtown, N.J., make the cut for this year’s race.
Jeg Coughlin and his Jeg’s Mail Order Chevy Cavalier qualified No. 2 for the event this year. Coughlin will be making his fifth appearance in the King Demon Crown race. He won back-to-back titles in 1999 and 2000.
“As a team or a driver you always want to win the special events,” said Coughlin. “There is always a lot of excitement that surrounds events like this. We qualified No. 2 this year and that’s something to be proud of as a team. Our team has won twice in the past and this will be the fifth year I have raced in the event. We are going to do some testing before heading to Route 66 Raceway that should only make us stronger.”
PAST PERFORMANCE:
Jeg Coughlin has won 11 of the last 12 rounds at Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Ill. He defeated Ron Krisher to win the event in 2002, was runner-up at the spring race in 2003, and won again in the fall of 2003, beating Greg Anderson in the final.
SUMMARY OF LAST SEVEN EVENTS:
Jeg has earned 400 points thru the first seven events of the 2004 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series season. He will enter the eighth race of 2004 NHRA season in the No. 5 position with 16 races remaining. The 33-year old has qualified for all seven events contested (No. 7, No. 3, No. 3, No. 11, No. 4, No. 7 and No. 4) and has been in the top-half of the field six times to start race day with lane choice.
POINTS:
1. Greg Anderson / 784
2. Kurt Johnson / 541
3. Jason Line / 450
4. Larry Morgan / 444
5. Jeg Coughlin / 400
TV Schedule:
| 5/22 | Qualifying | 7-9 PM (ET) |
| 5/23 | Repeat – Qualifying | 3-5 AM (ET) |
| 5/23 | NHRA2Day | 11:30 AM-12 PM (ET) |
| 5/23 | Eliminations | 7-10 PM (ET) |
| 5/24 | Repeat – Eliminations | 1:30-4:00 AM (ET) |
(ALL SHOWS ARE ON ESPN2)
You Can Find Our Online Media Web Site At: www.teamjegs.com
Media Contact:
Scott “Woody” Woodruff
Director of Media
Office 800.345.4545 ext 3412
Mobile 614.595.1820
Fax 740.362.4385
Email jegspr@aol.com