Team JEGS Pre-race Notes:
Denso Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals
Team JEGS Pre-race Notes
Denso Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals
The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, Nev. (April 1-3)
Six-time NHRA world champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. has returned to the Pro Stock class on a full-time basis in 2016. He is racing a new Rick Jones Race Cars-built Dodge Dart as a member of the Elite Motorsports team.
Jeg Coughlin Jr.
Last season, Jeg took a breather from the Pro Stock class but returned at midseason for a brief stint with Elite Motorsports. In three events, he recorded a runner-up and semifinal finish.
Jeg is racing as a teammate to two-time world champ Erica Enders. The Elite team also includes the Pro Stock entries of Drew Skillman and Vincent Nobile. Rickie Jones is the crew chief for Jeg’s Hemi-powered Dodge, and his father, Rick, is the crew chief for Enders. Veteran crew chiefs Mark Ingersoll and Brian “Lump” Self round out the Elite roster as the crew chiefs for Skillman and Nobile, respectively. All four Elite teams and their crew chiefs 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 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.
After the first three events of the season, Jeg enters the Las Vegas event ranked No. 6 in the NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock points standings.
In Las Vegas, Jeg will take part in the 32nd annual K&N Horsepower Challenge, a special event that features the top eight drivers in the Pro Stock class. The winner of the K&N Challenge will receive $50,000. After sitting out most of the 2015 season, Jeg was able to enter the event as the No. 8 seed by winning a special fan vote. He will race against Greg Anderson in Round 1.
Jeg has three previous wins in the K&N Horsepower Challenge, in 1999, 2000, and 2009. This will be his 13th start in the popular all-star event.
The K&N Horsepower Challenge Sweepstakes gives fans an exciting opportunity to win. Eight fans who enter the K&N Horsepower Challenge Sweepstakes will be selected to win a trip for two to the K&N Horsepower Challenge. Each winner will be paired with one of the eight Pro Stock finalists, and the fan paired with the 2016 K&N Horsepower Challenge champion will win a 2016 K&N Horsepower Challenge Edition Toyota Tacoma.
During his professional career, which began in late 1997, Jeg has earned 15 top-10 finishes in the NHRA Pro Stock class.
Jeg 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’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.
During his career, Jeg has won the Pro Stock trophy five times in Las Vegas. He claimed a win at the inaugural event in 2000 by beating Warren Johnson and returned in 2001 and 2002 to post final-round victories over Jim Yates and Johnson, respectively. Jeg also won back-to-back titles in 2008 and 2009, beating Greg Stanfield both times.
In addition to his five Pro Stock wins, Jeg has posted three runner-ups in Las Vegas. He reached the final round at both the spring and fall events in 2001 and the fall race in 2014.
Jeg Jr. has qualified in the top half of the Pro Stock field 14 times in Las Vegas, including a best of No. 1 in 2007, 2008, and 2014. During his career, he has qualified in the top spot 20 times.
In 26 appearances at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (including the fall event), Jeg has a round-win record of 46-19 in Pro Stock competition.
In addition to his Pro Stock wins, Jeg has won the Super Comp title at the spring Las Vegas race in 2012.
Last season, Jeg accomplished a longtime goal with his first national event double. Racing at the JEGS NHRA Northern SPORTSnationals in Columbus, Ohio, he won the Super Gas and Stock titles. In Stock, he drove a Dodge Challenger Drag Pak to the title.
Including The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Jeg has won at least one NHRA national event at 24 different facilities. The only current venues on the NHRA tour where he has not won are the tracks in Norwalk, Ohio, and Epping, N.H.
Jeg is one of just 16 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, and Greg Anderson.
Jeg is the only driver to win national event titles in seven different categories: Pro Stock, Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, and Top Dragster.
Jeg is the only professional racer in history to win a national event title from all 16 starting spots. During his Indy win in 2000, he qualified No. 16.
With 58 career Pro Stock wins, Jeg ranks fourth all-time among Pro Stock drivers. Only Warren Johnson (97), Bob Glidden (85), and Greg Anderson (79) have won more titles.
In 360 career Pro Stock races, Jeg has reached the final round 100 times, recording 58 wins. Including his 18 Sportsman victories, he has won a total of 76 times, good for ninth place on NHRA’s all-time wins list. During his career, he has appeared in 124 final rounds, 100 as a professional and 24 as a Sportsman racer.
Troy Coughlin Jr.
During his Pro Stock career, Jeg has competed in 360 events and recorded 579 round-wins while incurring just 286 losses. He has red-lighted only 20 times and failed to qualify just 16 times.
Third generation racer Troy Coughlin Jr. will also be representing the JEGS Mail Order team in Las Vegas. He will be racing his JEGS.com Corvette in the Super Gas class.
Troy is a five-time NHRA national event winner and the first third-generation Coughlin to win a major event. He won Super Comp titles at the 2009 Las Vegas race and the 2010 U.S. Nationals. He also has three Super Gas victories in Gainesville (2013), Indianapolis (2014), and the JEGS NHRA SPORTSnationals in Columbus (2014).
Troy is also the 2013 NHRA North Central Division Super Gas champion.
During his career, Troy has appeared in nine NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series final rounds and has claimed three victories.
In addition to his success at NHRA events, Troy is regarded as one of the sport’s best bracket racers. He has scored several major victories, including a $25,000 payday in the Super Bucks event at Atco Dragway and a $10,000 win the Spring Buck Blast at South Georgia Motorsports Park.
Last year, Troy raced in the NHRA J&A Services Pro Mod Drag Racing Series, where he was named Rookie of the Year. More recently, he earned his NHRA Top Fuel license and is scheduled to make additional test runs in a Don Schumacher Racing Top Fuel car following the Denso Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals.
Both Jeg and Troy will return to Las Vegas on April 12-16 for the annual K&N Spring Fling Million, one of the sport’s premier bracket races. Promoted by veteran racers Peter Biondo and Kyle Seipel, the highlight of the event will be on Friday, April 15, where the main event winner could earn a payday of up to $1 million.
The Coughlin family, including John, Troy Sr., Mike, Jeg Jr., and Troy Jr., has combined for 109 NHRA national event victories since 1990. They have won in 10 different eliminators: Pro Stock, Pro Stock Truck, Pro Mod, Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, Top Sportsman, and Top Dragster.