CHEVROLET RACING IN NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION
JEGS ROUTE 66 NHRA NATIONALS
ROUTE 66 RACEWAY IN JOLIET, ILLINOIS
SUNDAY, JUNE 3, 2018
Chevrolet Adds to Season Victory Total in Funny Car, Pro Stock
• Reigning Funny Car champion Robert Hight earns first win of the season
• Jeg Coughlin Jr. picks up first Pro Stock victory since 2014 season
• No. 6 qualifier John Force back on track, reaches Funny Car semifinals
• Justin Lamb is Stock Eliminator runner-up in Chevrolet COPO Camaro
JOLIET, Ill. (June 3, 2018) – Chevrolet drivers Robert Hight and Jeg Coughlin Jr. brought the crowd at Route 66 Raceway to its feet with exciting wins in the finals of their respective National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Mello Yello Drag Racing Series classes.
The multiple-time champions earned their initial victories of the season – Hight in Funny Car and Coughlin in Pro Stock – at the JEGS Route 66 NHRA Nationals. Coughlin’s win in the JEGS.com/Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro SS was his first since June 2014.
Hight, the reigning Funny Car champion driving the Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS, secured his 42nd career victory and first since Dallas in October 2017 by defeating Ron Capps in the final. He is the first driver in four years to win from the No. 12 qualifying spot.
“My first win in Chicago, this one is pretty special,” said Hight, who advanced to his fourth final round of the season and 68th of his career. “We were having problems in qualifying, but when you have a team like this behind you, you never lose faith and know you’re going to get it turned around.”
Hight defeated John Force Racing teammate and No. 4 qualifier Courtney Force, driving the Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro SS, in the quarterfinals. Force was the low qualifier and won the previous two races, including against Hight in the final at Topeka, Kansas.
John Force, the No. 6 qualifier in the PEAK Coolant & Motor Oil Chevrolet Camaro SS, advanced to the semifinals for the second time this season. He was ousted by Ron Capps as the NHRA Funny Car champions met for the 93rd time.
Coughlin, the eighth different Chevrolet winner in nine Pro Stock races, beat No. 1 qualifier Greg Anderson (Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS) in their 19th final-round match-up and 92nd overall.
It was Coughlin’s 59th Pro Stock victory, which includes four at Route 66 Raceway, and 77th in seven classes in his long career. He had been to seven final rounds in the interim before picking up this victory.
“Greg and I have been head to head many times and every round today felt like a final round,” said Coughlin, who defeated Anderson to register his last win. “It was fantastic. The whole Elite crew gave me a rocket this weekend.”
Anderson, who claimed his fifth low qualifier honor of the season and 98th of his career,
took the green light in his 1,100th Pro Stock elimination round. He is 91-7 in first rounds when the No. 1 qualifier. Anderson advanced to his 151st Pro stock final, tying Warren Johnson for the most all time.
Coughlin eliminated No. 2 qualifier Tanner Gray (Gray Motorsports Valvoline Chevrolet Camaro SS) in one semifinal. Anderson defeated Vincent Nobile, the lone two-time winner this season in the Mountain View Tire Chevrolet Camaro SS, in the other semifinal.
Deric Kramer, who earned his first Pro Stock victory at Topeka in the American Ethanol Chevrolet Camaro SS, won his first-round matchup. Other winners included Jason Line (Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS), who claimed his first Pro Stock win at the track in 2004, Matt Hartford (Total Seal Chevrolet Camaro SS), and Erica Enders (Melling Performance/Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro SS).
Brittany Force, the reigning Top Fuel champion driving the Advance Auto Parts Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster, bowed out in the first round of eliminations. Force, the No. 2 qualifier, has qualified either first or second in five of the nine races.
Justin Lamb of Hendersonville, Nevada, the 2017 Stock Eliminator champion in a Chevrolet COPO Camaro, was the runner-up in the class in his 32nd career national event final round. He won earlier this season at Las Vegas.
Lamb defeated Jeff Taylor of Sellersburg, Indiana, the winner at Gainesville in his COPO Camaro, in the semifinals. Jeff Strickland of Red Bay, Alabama, the 2016 Stock Eliminator champion in his Chevrolet COPO Camaro, fell in the quarterfinals. Strickland won at Atlanta this season.
Lamb, also the 2017 Super Stock champion, won the class trophy at Route 66 Raceway in his 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt.
The NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season continues June 8-10 with the Virginia NHRA Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park in North Dinwiddie. FS1 will telecast qualifications live at 2:30 p.m. ET June 9 and taped eliminations and finals at 6 p.m. June 10. The racetrack last hosted an NHRA national event in 2009.
An interview with Funny Car winner ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTO CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 12 qualifier; 42nd career win and fourth final round of season; first victory since Dallas in 2017, where he beat Ron Capps):
MUST BE A VERY SATISFYING VICTORY ON A HOT RACETRACK?
“It was a great weekend. We didn’t qualify so well. We qualified 12th, which is not exactly where you want to qualify. We weren’t just making it down the track. When you have a team like this behind you, you never lose faith, you always believe in them and I always thought Chicago might have my number because this was my 14th time here and never won this race. I’ve been in some finals, but finally got it done today in Chicago and that’s big because as a driver you want to win at every venue you go to and there’s not a better place than Chicago. I can’t believe this place is 20 years old. I remember rolling in here as a crew guy, thinking, ‘Wow, look at this stadium. It wraps around the starting line.’ It’s kind of the first of its kind and it’s still one of the top spots in the country, so great weekend for our team. I think it’s my fourth final of the year and had not won any races. But last year I won the championship and didn’t win till Denver so I am way ahead of last year.
“How about my boss, John Force. You look at all he went through this weekend and to race to the semifinals. That was pretty impressive. You are not going to keep a guy like that down. There is a reason why he has won 16 championships. You see how badly he wants this and how much he loves what he does. We was racing in front of his sponsor Old World Industries and PEAK here in Chicago. He was going to race no matter what. Things went his way and he drove well. I am really proud of that team.”
HOW MUCH DOES THE TRACK PREP CHANGE WHAT YOU DO IN THE CAR?
“A lot. Now as a driver you have to keep the race car in the middle of the groove. I can tell you right now the last couple of races I have won rounds by pedaling. You have to be ready for anything. The traction just isn’t there. When you have crew chiefs like Jimmy Prock and Chris Cunningham we hold both ends of the national record, these guys swing for the fences. They want to be low ET every round. When you are low ET even on a great prepped track you are right on the edge. It has been a big learning curve for us. It will still be a learning curve for us. I think maybe we turned a corner today. I am pretty proud of that.
“I also want to mention one other thing. It has been a pretty cool week. My daughter won her first in junior dragster last weekend in Barona, California. Trust me I have heard it quite a lot already this week that she won before dad this year. It has been a cool week. I’ll be honest I am pretty excited about winning my first race of the season this weekend. I think I was just as excited seeing my daughter win her first race and I was maybe a little more excited for her.”
TALK ABOUT THE CHALLENGES OF THE RIGHT LANE. YOU DIDN’T SEEM TO HAVE ANY BUT OTHERS DID
“In the first round we spun and we dodged a bullet. Cruz didn’t make it down the track and I had to pedal it. We got by first round and after that we were able to get it. We had lane choice in the semis but then Capps ran better so we were back in the right lane in the final. It is pretty cool to listen in to what Jimmy Prock is talking about. He is making teenie, teenie adjustments. I can feel it as a driver. I can feel the race car slipping, hooking and spinning. I am telling you I don’t think there is a lot left.”
THE DRIVERS YOU BEAT TODAY WERE TOUGH
“Welcome to NHRA Mello Yello Funny Car racing. That is what you are going to get every time you win a race. You are going to go up against a tough line up. There are no easy ones. You saw a lot of upsets first round. There are no easy ones in this class. I qualified 14th in Topeka and raced to the final and lost to Courtney (Force). I was 12th here and it just shows you how tough it is out here. When you win one of these you definitely earned it. There is a lot of pride with the win.”
An interview with Pro Stock winner JEG COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM/ELITE PERFORMANCE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 6 qualifier; 59th Pro Stock victory, 77th overall in seven classes; first victory since Englishtown in June 2014):
IT COULDN’T HAVE BEEN MORE PRESS-PACKED IN THE FINAL ROUND
“Greg (Anderson) and I have been head to head many times and every round today felt like a final round. Rick and Rickie Jones and whole Elite crew just gave me a rocket this weekend. We found a little problem with the race car after Friday. Actually, the KB guys helped us out with some parts. I had a rocket come Saturday and then we led the pack all four rounds today. I felt like we ran the table. It felt great to get by Greg. I saw him turn it red and I knew I wasn’t far behind him. I was feeling great all the way down the racetrack. It’s been a couple of years to win in Pro Stock. All my fans and friends and co-workers back at JEGS, this one is for them. They’ve been inspiring us and pushing us. Everyone at Team Elite, we’ve had some good cars and showed it today.”
PERFECT TIME TO GET HOT AND MAKE A MOVE IN THE POINTS
“No question. Since we’ve made some changes in the team in the last couple of races, Erica’s (Enders) car and my car are certainly hopped us and are in the mix. I had a couple of goals coming into the weekend and I met one midway through the day and checked of the second one in the first race of the four-race stretch. I couldn’t be happier for (Elite Motorsports owner) Richard Freeman and everyone back at JEGS. This one is for them.”
YOUR FIRST PRO STOCK WIN AFTER SEVEN FINAL ROUNDS SINCE 2014
“Who’s counting? It feels fantastic, without question. We’ve been fortunate to visit the winner’s circle on occasion over the last 30 years quite a bit and today is one of those days I won’t forget. We’ve had a little bit of a dry spell. I raced two races in 2015 and went to one final … came out to drive two races with Elite for fun. And ’16 and ’17 were a little bit of a challenge. Anyone who has followed the sport knows we’ve just an unbelievable team with Elite Motorsports that Richard Freeman has put together with Rick and Rickie Jones, Mark Ingersoll and Brian Self at the helm of maintaining the cars with consistency. Last year we were fast but hot and cold. This year we’ve really come onto a great stretch. Vincent (Nobile) qualified No. 1 at Pomona and Elite winning five or six of the nine events thus far. I feel proud to put our name in that hat under the Elite Motorsports banner. No better place to do it today. The JEGS All-Stars yesterday was just an unbelievable event, and I’ll be guilty of saying that I watched just about every single round and I wanted to be in each and every race car that was going down the track. It fired me up and I drove today like a true Sportsman. I was aggressive and stayed consistent. Rick and Rickie gave me a great car. We were low ET four rounds in a row and didn’t look back. There’s nothing we’d like better than to travel to Richmond and bck it up with a nice exclamation point.”
IN THE FINAL, YOU’RE ENTIRE FAMILY WAS DOWN THERE WATCHING
“It’s probably the biggest thing I miss being in the race car. I’ve been outside the race car for many of my brother’s wins and the Sportsman ranks. The celebration is what’s so fun. It’s just that true element you enjoy for the weekend. But being in the car you miss that, but I told the guys today I didn’t miss anything. I was so excited from behind the wheel after the four runs we made today and seeing the win light burning a hole in my helmet.”
IT WAS ALI AND FRAZIER IN THE FINAL, A GREAT PAIRING OF DRIVERS. WHAT WERE YOU THINKING ABOUT WHEN YOU CAME TO THE LINE?
“I was just thinking that I have a great car that’s repeating extremely well each and every round. Coming into the final, I just wanted to make a good, clean run and give myself and opportunity to elevate the car down the track. As I was going by the Tree I could see my win light glowing. I banged through the gears just for fun and probably pushed the clutch in and eased on through there, but the fans deserved an almost low ET run of the day and it felt really good.”