Five Coughlin family members to race at National Trail this weekend
HEBRON, Ohio (July 19) — The Buckeye Fuel Wars — aka the Coughlin Family Showcase — takes place at National Trail Raceway this weekend. Five members of the Coughlin family will race across five NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series classes at the North Central Division event.

Mike Coughlin
Mike Coughlin, one of four brothers who runs JEGS High Performance, is driving his Top Dragster, and his son, Clay, is racing a Jr. Dragster.

Mike’s nephew Troy Coughlin Jr. will race his Super Gas and Super Comp cars. Troy’s sister, Meghan, is entered in Super Street, and sister Paige will drive a Jr. Dragster.

“National Trail is our home track,” Mike said. “We’ve had a lot of good success there over the years. My dad had a lot of success, and it’s just like home. We’re just comfortable there; I know I am. We probably know that racetrack as well or better than anybody. I think our chances this weekend are really good.”

Having so many Coughlin family members racing in one weekend will create a fun atmosphere.

“It’s definitely going to be action-packed,” Troy said. ” ‘Never a dull moment’ is a statement that we always use at that race, for sure.”

Troy is competing for a national championship with his two cars, making this weekend’s Division 3 race pivotal for him. Racers can count five divisional races toward national points. He currently sits second in Super Comp points nationally.

“We need a good performance as far as the points stuff goes,” Troy said. “July, August are pivotal. This is a moment where you’re in it or you’re not, and we want to keep our heads in the game. We’ll take it one lap at a time, focus, and try to keep a little bit of self-control.”

Troy Coughlin Jr.

Mike, though, isn’t worried about points; instead, he is hoping his new JEGS.com Top Dragster continues its uptick in performance.

“We’ve made huge strides with my car in the last couple of races,” Mike said. “We’re still trying to figure out what it likes and what it doesn’t like, but we did some of that in Chicago, and it ran better than we expected. It’s now starting to run to its potential, and our goal from here on out is to try and keep it consistent. I think the path we’re on, we’re hoping to get that done.”

Meghan, Troy Coughlin Sr.’s daughter, is testing her uncle John’s Super Stock truck this week in preparation for racing it at National Trail.

“It’ll be really cool to watch her chase her dreams,” Troy Jr. said.

Clay and Paige will be chasing their dreams, too, in the Jr. Dragster program.

“They’re going to run the Jr. program on Sunday morning,” Mike said. “I’m excited. It’s a good race for us, and I really enjoy racing with my nephew and nieces and, of course, my son. It should be a great weekend.”