Gateway Motorsports Park (St. Louis) Sept. 23-25
Six-time world champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. will continue his pursuit of the NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock title at this weekend’s AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals. Jeg Jr. will be driving a Rick Jones Race Cars-built Dodge Dart as a member of the Elite Motorsports team.
Last season, Jeg Jr. took a breather from the Pro Stock class but returned at mid-year for a brief stint with the Elite Motorsports team. In three events, Jeg Jr. raced to a runner-up and a semifinal.
Jeg Coughlin Jr. is racing as a teammate to two-time world champ Erica Enders. The Elite team also includes Pro Stock racer Vincent Nobile. Rickie Jones is the crew chief for Coughlin’s HEMI-powered Dodge while his father, Rick, is the crew chief for Enders. Veteran crew chiefs Mark Ingersoll and Brian “Lump” Self, round out the Elite roster. All three Elite teams and their crew chiefs, regularly share data and tuning advice.
The NHRA Pro Stock class has an entirely different look this season thanks to a number of major rules revisions. Electronic fuel injection has replaced carburetors and as a result, the cars will no longer have big hood scoops. Pro Stock engines are now limited to a maximum of 10,500 rpm and the wheelie bar length has been shortened.
Jeg Jr. enters the St. Louis event ranked No. 9 in the NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock points standings. Last week, during the Countdown opener in Charlotte, Jeg. Jr. defeated Allen Johnson in round one before losing to Vincent Nobile in the quarterfinals. His best finish of the season is a semifinal final at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol, Tenn.
Jeg Jr. has won two Pro Stock titles at Gateway Motorsports Park. He defeated Greg Anderson to win in 2002 and stopped Jason Line in the final round of the 2009 event. Jeg was also a runner-up in Pro Stock here in 1998, 2007, and 2010.
In 15 career appearances at Gateway Motorsports Park, Jeg Jr. has a round win record of 27-13 in Pro Stock competition.
As a sportsman racer, Jeg Jr. has won three titles at the St. Louis track. He won the Super Stock title in 1997 and 2003 the Top Dragster title in 2010.
Jeg Jr. has qualified in the top half of the Pro Stock field in 13 of his 14 appearances at Gateway Motorsports Park including a best of second in 2014. His average qualifying position at this track is No. 6
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 one of just 19 professional racers to win 500 elimination rounds in NHRA competition, a feat he accomplished at the 2013 Topeka race. The only other Pro Stock drivers with 500 wins are Warren Johnson, Bob Glidden, Greg Anderson, and Jason Line.
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.
Last season, Jeg Jr. accomplished a longtime goal with his first national event double. Racing at the JEGS Northern SPORTSnationals in Columbus, he won the Super Gas and Stock titles. In Stock, Jeg Jr. drove his Dodge Challenger Drag Pak to the title.
Including Gateway Motorsports Park, 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.
With 586 round wins, Jeg Jr. is on the verge of catching ten-time champion Bob Glidden, who registered 597 wins during his career.
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 58 Pro Stock wins in his career, Jeg Jr. ranks fourth all-time among Pro Stock drivers. Only Warren Johnson (97), Bob Glidden (85) and Greg Anderson (85) have more titles.
In 376 career Pro Stock races, Jeg Jr. has reached the final round 100 times, recording 58 wins. Including his 18 sportsman victories, Jeg Jr. has won a total of 76 times, good for ninth place on NHRA’s all-time wins list. During his career, Jeg Jr. has appeared in 124 final rounds, 100 as a professional and 24 as a sportsman racer.
During his Pro Stock career, Jeg Jr. has competed in 376 events and recorded 586 round wins while incurring just 302 losses. He has red-lighted just 22 times and failed to qualify just 16 times.
The AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals will mark the ninth race in the ten-event 2016 J&A Service NHRA Pro Mod Series. Defending and two-time series champion Troy Coughlin will be behind the wheel of turbocharged JEGS.com Chevy Corvette.
Troy enters the AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals as the third-ranked Pro Mod driver in the series. He is currently 111points behind leader Rickie Smith and 17 points behind second-place Bob Rahaim.
At the most recent NHRA Pro Mod event in Charlotte, Troy Sr. qualified in the No. 7 spot with a 5.77, and suffered a rare round one loss against Mike Castellana.
Troy is one of just four Pro Mod racers who have qualified for all eight events contested this season. This season, Troy has qualified no worse than No. 7.
Troy’s first Pro Mod victory came at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in New Jersey in 2005 when as he drove his supercharged Mustang to as win over Zack Barkledge in the final round.
Troy is one of the few Pro Mod competitors who have raced all three current engine combinations; turbocharged, supercharged, and nitrous oxide assisted.
Troy Sr. won the St. Louis race in 2012, a victory that was crucial to his late-season run to the NHRA Pro Mod series championship. Last season, in his most recent trip to Gateway Motorsports Park, Troy reached the semifinals in Pro Mod.
Before moving to the Pro Mod class, Troy enjoyed success in the NHRA Pro Stock class, recording two wins in 12 final round appearances. He also won the $50,000 top prize at the 2000 Winston No Bull Showdown at Bristol Dragway, a special non-points event for Pro Stock competitors.
All told, Troy has ten NHRA national event wins in 25 final round appearances in Pro Mod, Pro Stock, and Super Gas competition.
Troy is a former National Muscle Car Association (NMCA) Pro Street champion. While racing his Pro Street car, he also won the $50,000 Big Dog event at Piedmont Dragway in Greensboro, N.C.
Troy’s JEGS.com Corvette is tuned by noted turbocharger expert Steve Petty. In NHRA Pro Mod configuration, the car has run in the 5.7s at nearly 260-mph.
The Coughlin family, including John, Troy, Mike, Jeg Jr. and Troy Jr. has combined for 110 NHRA national event victories since 1990. The Coughlin’s have won in nine different eliminators including Pro Stock, Pro Stock Truck, Pro Mod, Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, Top Sportsman and Top Dragster.
TEAM JEGS – By the Numbers
AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals Edition
7 – Wins for JEGS drivers at Gateway Motorsports Park (5 by Jeg Jr., an and 1 each by Troy and John)
10 – Number of classes where the Coughlin family has earned an NHRA national event victory
10 – NHRA national event wins for Troy Coughlin in Super Gas, Pro Mod, and Pro Stock
15 – Top ten finishes for Jeg Coughlin Jr. in the Pro Stock class since 1998
110 – Combined NHRA national event victories for the Coughlin family