Brainerd Int'l Raceway, Brainerd, Minn. (Aug. 14-17)
Reigning NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. will continue his title defense at this weekend's Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd, Minn. He will be racing the Dodge Dart that he debuted in March in Gainesville, Fla.
At the most recent NHRA event in Seattle, Jeg Jr. drove his HEMI-powered Dodge Dart to a quarterfinal finish in Pro Stock. He defeated Larry Morgan before losing to Greg Anderson.
Jeg Jr. enters this weekend's Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals as the fourth-ranked driver in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Pro Stock standings. He has appeared in five final rounds in the first 16 events of the season and has claimed victories in Atlanta and Englishtown, N.J.
Jeg Jr. continues to race as a teammate to former NHRA Pro Stock champion Allen Johnson in 2014. His Dodge Dart is once again powered by HEMI engines from Johnson's J&J Racing team and is tuned by Johnson's crew chiefs Mark Ingersoll and Adam Hornberger.
During his career, which began in 1997, Jeg Jr. has earned 14 top-10 finishes in the NHRA Pro Stock class. He has already clinched a berth in the 2014 Countdown to the Championship, which guarantees him a 15th top-10 finish.
Jeg Jr. has four career Pro Stock victories at Brainerd Int'l Raceway, having won there in 1999, 2002, 2007, and 2010. He defeated Warren Johnson in the 1999 final and stopped Minnesota native Greg Anderson in both 2002 and 2007. He defeated Shane Gray in 2010. Jeg Jr. was also the runner-up to Kurt Johnson at the 2000 race.
In 14 career appearances at Brainerd Int'l Raceway, Jeg Jr. has a round-win record of 26-10 in Pro Stock competition, making it one of his most successful tracks.
As a sportsman driver, Jeg Jr. also claimed the Super Stock title in Brainerd in 1997, beating then teammate Jeff Taylor in an all-JEGS Mail Order final round. In 1997, he also became the only driver to win four classes in the same season with victories in Pro Stock, Comp, Super Stock, and Super Gas.
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 earlier this year in Gainesville.
Jeg Jr. is one of just 16 professional racers to win 500 elimination rounds of NHRA competition, a feat he accomplished at the 2013 Topeka, Kan., race. The only other Pro Stock drivers with 500 wins are Warren Johnson, Bob Glidden, and Greg Anderson.
Jeg Jr. is one of only three drivers, along with Peter Biondo and Scotty Richardson, to win national event titles in six different categories. He has won in Pro Stock, Comp, Super Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, and Top Dragster.
Jeg Jr. is the only professional racer in the history of NHRA to win a national event title from all 16 starting spots.
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, he claimed the NHRA Super Gas championship in 1992.
Jeg Jr. finished the 2013 season with four wins, four runner-up finishes, and seven semifinals in 24 events. For the season, he finished with a 48-20 record in eliminations, second only to Top Fuel champion Shawn Langdon, who finished with a 54-17 record.
Including Brainerd Int'l Raceway, Jeg 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, Ohio, and Epping, N.H.
In 16 races this season, Jeg Jr. has two wins, three runner-ups, and three semifinals to his credit. His overall record for the year is 27-14.
With 58 career Pro Stock wins, Jeg Jr. ranks fourth all-time among Pro Stock drivers. Only Warren Johnson (96), Bob Glidden (85), and Greg Anderson (74) have more titles.
In his 346 career Pro Stock races, Jeg Jr. has reached the final round 97 times, recording 58 wins. Including his 16 sportsman victories, he has won a total of 74 times, tying him with Greg Anderson for eighth place on NHRA's all-time wins list. During his career, he has appeared in 119 final rounds, 97 as a professional and 22 as a sportsman racer.
Of Jeg Jr.'s 560 career round-wins in Pro Stock, 93 have come via a starting-line holeshot, which is the most by any past or current NHRA Pro driver.
During his Pro Stock career, Jeg Jr. has competed in 346 events and recorded 560 round-wins while incurring just 272 losses. He has failed to qualify just 16 times.
The Coughlin family, including John, Troy, Mike, Jeg Jr., and Troy Jr., has combined for 104 NHRA national event victories since 1990. The Coughlins have won in nine different eliminators: Pro Stock, Pro Stock Truck, Pro Mod, Comp, Super Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, Top Sportsman, and Top Dragster.
Team JEGS – By the Numbers (Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals Edition)
5 – Wins for Jeg Coughlin Jr. at Brainerd Int'l Raceway (Super Stock, 1997; Pro Stock, 1999, 2002, 2007, 2010)
9 – Classes in which the Coughlin family has earned an NHRA national event victory
20 – Times Jeg Jr. has qualified No. 1 in a Pro Stock field
104 – Combined NHRA national event victories for the Coughlin family
832 – Pro Stock elimination rounds for Jeg Jr. with 560 wins and 272 losses (67.3 percent)