Gainesville Raceway (Gainesville, Fla.) March 14-17
The JEGS Mail Order team will arrive in force at the historic 50th annual Amalie Gatornationals. Jeg Coughlin Jr. will race in Pro Stock, Mike Coughlin will compete in Top Dragster, and Troy Coughlin Jr. will race in Top Alcohol Dragster.
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Gatornationals, all three JEGS Mail Order entries will feature “throwback” paint schemes selected from some of the top racecars family patriarch Jeg Coughlin Sr. campaigned during his career.
Jeg Coughlin Jr. will continue his pursuit of a sixth NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock title (and seventh overall) at this weekend’s Gainesville event. Jeg Jr. will once again be racing as a member of the Elite Motorsports team.
Two weeks ago in Phoenix, Jeg won his 62nd Pro Stock event and 81st overall when he defeated Matt Hartford in the final round. The final round represented the 1,000th round of professional competition for Jeg Jr.
Last season, Jeg Jr. finished at the No. 2 ranked driver in the Pro Stock class. He finished in the top ten for the 18th time in his career, which began in 1997.
Jeg Coughlin Jr. is once again racing as a teammate to two-time world champ Erica Enders. The Elite team also includes Pro Stock racers Alex Laughlin and Rodger Brogdon. Jeg Jr.’s crew chief will be multi-talented Rickie Jones, who has extensive experience as a driver, chassis builder, and tuner. The Elite team also includes crew chiefs Rick Jones, Mark Ingersoll and Brian “Lump” Self, who regularly share data.
This weekend, Jeg Jr. will debut a new Chevy Camaro race car built by Rick Jones Race Cars. The car will be tested extensively in Florida before making its competition debut in Gainesville.
During his career, Jeg Jr. has won the Pro Stock title twice in Gainesville. He claimed his first win in 2001 by beating Mark Osborne in the final round and then stopped Jason Line to win his second title in 2008. Jeg Jr. was also a runner-up in Gainesville in 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2013.
In 18 career appearances at Gainesville Raceway, Jeg Jr. has a round win record of 29-14 in Pro Stock competition
In his 18 Gainesville races, Jeg Jr. has qualified in the top half of the Pro Stock field 14 times, including a best of No. 1 at the 1998 event.
Jeg Jr.’s best elapsed time in a Pro Stock car is 6.484 seconds and his best speed is 214.62 mph, both recorded in Gainesville in 2014.
Jeg Jr. is a five-time NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Pro Stock champion. He earned season titles in 2000, 2002, 2007-2008 and 2013. As a sportsman driver, Jeg Jr. also claimed the NHRA Super Gas championship in 1992.
Including Gainesville Raceway, Jeg Coughlin Jr. has won at least one NHRA national event at 24 different facilities making him the all-time leader in that category. The only current venues on the NHRA Mello Yello tour where he has not won are the tracks in Norwalk and Epping.
Jeg Jr. is the only driver to win national event titles in seven different categories. He has won in Pro Stock, Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas and Top Dragster.
Jeg Jr. is the only professional racer in history to win a national event title from all 16 starting spots. During his Indy win in 2000, Jeg qualified No. 16.
With 62 Pro Stock wins in his career, Jeg Jr. ranks fourth all-time among Pro Stock drivers. Only Warren Johnson (97), Greg Anderson (91), and the late Bob Glidden (85) and have more titles.
In 431 career Pro Stock races, Jeg Jr. has reached the final round 108 times, recording 62 wins. Including his 19 sportsman victories, Jeg Jr. has won a total of 81 times, good for ninth place on NHRA's all-time list. During his career, Jeg Jr. has appeared in 133 final rounds, 108 as a professional and 25 as a sportsman racer.
During his Pro Stock career, Jeg Jr. has competed in 431 events and has a round-win record of 647-353. He has red-lighted just 24 times and failed to qualify just 16 times.
Last weekend, Mike made his 2019 debut in the Top Dragster class behind the wheel of his supercharged JEGS.com dragster. He qualified No. 3 at the Gainesville Raceway Lucas Oil Series event with a competitive 6.12 elapsed time.
Mike is a 14-time NHRA national event winner. He has won national event titles in Pro Stock Truck, Super Comp, Top Sportsman, and Top Dragster.
Mike began his career in the Super Gas and Super Comp classes in the 1980s and has extensive experience in the heads-up “super classes”
Mike is a two-time Division 3 champion in the Top Sportsman class.
Troy Jr. is a six-time NHRA national event winner and the first third-generation Coughlin to win a major event. Troy Jr. won the U.S. Nationals in Super Comp in 2010 and also won the Indy Super Gas title in 2014. His other wins have come in Las Vegas (2009), Gainesville (2013), Columbus (2014) and Reading (2018).
Last year, Troy Jr. began racing in the Top Alcohol Dragster class and he won his first Top Alcohol Dragster race when he drove his Rich McPhillips-owned dragster to the win at the NHRA Regional event in Norwalk. He has since claimed additions wins in Cecil County, Md., and Bowling Green, Ky.
Troy Jr. was crowned the 2018 North Central Region Top Alcohol Dragster champion and finished the season as the No. 4 ranked driver in the country. He was also crowned the 2013 NHRA North Central Division Super Gas champion.
In addition to his success in NHRA events, Troy Jr. also is regarded as one of the sport's best E.T. bracket racers. He has accumulated several major victories including a $25,000 payday at the Atco Dragway Superbucks event and a $10,000 win the Spring Buck Blast at South Georgia Motorsports Park. Two weeks ago, he won a $20,000 race at the Powerball of Bracket Racing event in Darlington, S.C.
On Friday, March 15, JEGS Mail Order founder Jeg Coughlin Sr. will celebrate his 81st birthday in Gainesville. Jeg Sr. will also attend the International Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Thursday evening at the Wyndham Garden Gainesville Hotel.
As part of the 50th anniversary celebration, the recently restored Barracuda Funny Car campaigned by Jeg Sr. during the 1969 season will be on display in the pit area at Gainesville Raceway. The car will be located in the Mopar display on Manufacturer’s Midway.
The JEGS Mail Order team will also take part in Sunday’s track walk, hosted by Darrell Gwynn. The event, labeled “Track Walk, for those who can’t” has annually helped raise money for the Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis.
Overall, the Coughlin family, including John, Troy, Mike, Jeg Jr. and Troy Jr. have combined for 122 NHRA national event victories since 1990. The Coughlin's have won in 11 different eliminators including Pro Stock, Pro Stock Truck, Pro Mod, Top Alcohol Dragster, Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, Top Sportsman and Top Dragster.
Team JEGS – By the Numbers (Amalie Gatornationals Edition)
3 – Gainesville wins for Team JEGS. (2 Pro Stock wins by Jeg Jr., 1 in Super Gas win by Troy Jr.)
7 – Different classes where Jeg Coughlin Jr. has won at least one NHRA national event title (the only driver to do so)
11 – Number of classes where the Coughlin family has earned an NHRA national event victory
103 – Holeshot wins by Jeg Coughlin Jr. in the Pro Stock class (tops among NHRA pro drivers)
122 – Combined NHRA national event victories for the Coughlin family
1000 – Rounds of professional competition by Jeg Coughlin Jr.