zMAx Dragway (Concord, N.C.) Sept. 26-18
Six-time world champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. will continue his pursuit of the NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock title at this weekend’s NHRA Carolina 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 zMax event ranked No. 10 in the NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock points standings. His best finish of the season is a semifinal final at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol, Tenn. This is the first event in the Countdown to the Championship, NHRA’s six-race playoff. As the No. 10 seed, Jeg Jr. is just 110 points out of first place.
Jeg Jr. is the 2013 NHRA Carolina Nationals Pro Stock champ. He defeated Jason Line in the final round claiming a win that helped him clinch the 2013 NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock championship.
Jeg Jr. and then-teammate David Connolly helped christen zMax Dragway and were the first professional drivers to make a run on the drag strip when it opened in 2008.
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 zMAx Dragway, 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 585 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 375 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 375 events and recorded 585 round wins while incurring just 301 losses. He has red-lighted just 22 times and failed to qualify just 16 times.
The Carolina Nationals will mark the eighth 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 Carolina Nationals as the second-ranked Pro Mod driver in the series. He is currently 87 points behind leader Rickie Smith.
At the most recent NHRA Pro Mod event in Indianapolis, Troy Sr. qualified in the No. 1 spot with a 5.77, and defeated Jim Whiteley, Bob Rahaim, and Billy Glidden before a close -.001-second red-light ended his weekend against Von Smith.
Troy is one of just four Pro Mod racers who have qualified for all six events contested this season. In six races, 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 won Pro Mod titles at zMAx Dragway in 2013 and 2014. In 2014, he drove from the No. 11 qualifying spot to the final round where he defeated Mike Janis. Along the way, Coughlin also recorded the quickest run of the event with a 5.845-second elapsed time.
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 JEGS Mail Order team will also be represented in Concord by Mike Coughlin, who is racing in Top Dragster. Mike Coughlin is a two-time North Central Division champion in the Top Sportsman class. He won titles in 2007 and 2009.
During his career, Mike has won 13 NHRA national event titles in 19 final rounds. Mike has won in three classes; Pro Stock Truck, Super Comp, and Top Sportsman. In addition to his 13 NHRA national event titles, Mike also has 11 Lucas Oil Series divisional victories. He won his first LODRS title at Beech Bend Raceway Park in 1989.
Mike returned to the Top Dragster class this season and has raced in four events with his new 6.0-second dragster. His best performance so far is a quarterfinal at the Division 3 Lucas Oil Series event in Indianapolis.
At the season-opener in Indianapolis, Mike debuted his new dragster equipped with a ProCharger supercharging system. Mike’s crew consists of Greg Cody, Tony Collier and Dave Raurk.
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
NHRA Carolina Nationals Edition
3 – Team JEGS entries in competition this weekend, Troy Coughlin, Mike Coughlin, and Jeg Coughlin Jr.
3 – Wins for JEGS drivers at zMAx Dragway (2 by Troy and 1 by Jeg Jr.)
10 – Number of classes where the Coughlin family has earned an NHRA national event victory
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