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Team JEGS U.S. Nationals Fast Facts

The JEGS Mail Order team will feature a healthy line-up for this week’s 66th annual Denso Spark Plugs U.S. Nationals. Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Troy Coughlin Jr. will be competing in Pro Stock, while Mike Coughlin is racing in Top Dragster. Troy Jr. also will be racing in Super Comp alongside fellow third-generation racers Paige Coughlin and Makenna Brown. This year, the U.S. Nationals will also be home to the prestigious JEGS Allstars race, which features 80 of NHRA’s best sportsman drag racers competing for individual and team honors and a part of a $150,000 purse.  Jeg Jr. has opened the 2020 season by winning two of the first four races and he’s the current points leader in the Pro Stock class as he chases a sixth NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Pro Stock title (and seventh overall). Jeg Jr. is once again racing as a member of the Elite Motorsports team. His Chevy Camaro will carry the familiar yellow-and-black colors of JEGS Mail Order along with the special edition JEGS 60th anniversary logo this season.  After winning national events in Super Gas, Super Comp, and Top Alcohol Dragster, as well as successful stints in Top Fuel and Pro Mod, Troy Jr. will be making his third start in the NHRA Pro Stock class. He will be once again be driving a Mustang for the Elite Performance team. At the most recent event, the Dodge NHRA Indy Nationals, Jeg Jr. and nephew Troy Jr. met in an historic all-JEGS final round. Jeg Jr. won his 65th Pro Stock race and 84th overall.  Last year, Jeg Jr. finished as the second-ranked driver in the Pro Stock class behind Elite teammate Erica Enders. It was the second-straight year that he’s been the championship runner-up. Jeg Jr. has now finished in the top 10 a total of 19 times in his professional career, which began in 1997. Jeg Jr. has announced 2020 as his last full-time season in professional drag racing. Jeg Jr.’s final campaign has been dubbed the “Breaking Barriers Tour,” in reference to his many racing accomplishments. To honor the 50th anniversary of the Pro Stock class, Jeg Jr.’s Chevy Camaro will carry a throwback paint scheme in Indy. It will bear a striking resemblance to the car in which he won his first title in 2000.  Earlier this season, Jeg Jr. won the $75,000 top prize in the Drag Illustrated World Doorslammer Nationals race in Orlando, Fla. Jeg Jr. defeated Greg Anderson in the final round of the inaugural event, which featured the sport’s best Pro Stock and Pro Mod cars. Jeg Jr. is once again racing as a teammate to three-time champion Erica Enders. The Elite Motorsports team also includes Troy Jr., Alex Laughlin, Bruno Massel, Aaron Stanfield and Marty Robertson. Jeg Jr.’s crew chief is Rickie Jones, who has extensive experience in the class as a driver, chassis builder, and tuner. The Elite team also features crew chiefs Rick Jones and Mark Ingersoll, who regularly share data.Jeg Coughlin Jr.
Jeg Jr. has won at least one national event at 24 different facilities, including Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis. The only current stops on the current NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series schedule where he has not won are the races in Norwalk, Ohio, and Epping, N.H. Jeg Jr. has three career Pro Stock victories at the U.S. Nationals, having won there in 2000, 2002 and 2009. Jeg Jr. defeated Ron Krisher in the 2000 final and stopped Jim Yates in 2002 and Greg Stanfield in 2009. Jeg Jr.’s most recent Pro Stock win at Indy last month was his fourth at Lucas Oil Raceway. In 21 career appearances at the U.S. Nationals, Jeg Jr. has a round-win record of 28-17 in Pro Stock competition, making it one of his most successful tracks. As a sportsman driver, Jeg Jr. also claimed the U.S. Nationals Super Gas title in 1992, beating Sherman Adcock Jr. in the final round. Jeg Jr. also won the prestigious Mopar Hemi Challenge at Indy in 2004, driving Michael Ogburn’s West Coast Hemi’s Barracuda to a final-round win over Rick Houser. In 20 career appearances at the U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis, Jeg Jr. has a round win record of 27-16 in Pro Stock competition, making it one of his most successful tracks. Adding his totals from the recent Indy events, Jeg Jr.’s total round-win record at Lucas Oil Raceway is 34-17. 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. 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 65 Pro Stock wins in his career, Jeg Jr. ranks fourth all-time among Pro Stock drivers. Only Warren Johnson (97), Greg Anderson (94) and the late Bob Glidden (85) and have more titles. In 451 career Pro Stock races, Jeg Jr. has reached the final round 114 times, recording 65 wins. Including his 19 sportsman victories, Jeg Jr. has won a total of 84 times. During his career, Jeg Jr. has appeared in 139 final rounds, 114 as a professional and 25 as a sportsman racer. Troy Coughlin Jr.
During his Pro Stock career, Jeg Jr. has competed in 451 events and has a round-win record of 683-370. He has failed to qualify just 16 times. Jeg Jr. has been the low qualifier 34 times in Pro Stock including the first two events in Pomona and Phoenix this year. Troy Jr. is an eight-time NHRA national event winner and the first third-generation Coughlin to win a major event. Troy Jr. won the U.S. Nationals in Super Comp in 2010 and also won the Indy Super Gas title in 2014. His other wins have come in Las Vegas (2009), Gainesville (2013), Columbus (2014), Reading (2018), Norwalk (2019) and Reading (2019). Troy Jr. was crowned the 2018 North Central Region Top Alcohol Dragster champion and the 2019 Eastern Region Top Alcohol Dragster champion. He was also crowned the 2013 NHRA North Central Division Super Gas champion. Last season, Troy Jr. appeared in 10 final rounds in Top Alcohol Dragster and earned five wins including national event titles in Norwalk and Reading. Troy Jr. has also earned victories at regional events at Atco Dragway, Beech Bend Raceway Park and Virginia Motorsports Park. During his career, the versatile Troy Jr. has raced in Top Fuel, Top Alcohol Dragster, Pro Mod, Super Comp, Super Gas, Top Dragster, E.T. Brackets, and Jr. Dragsters. Earlier this season in Orlando, he made his debut in the Pro Stock class alongside his uncle, Jeg Jr. The JEGS Mail Order teammates raced in round two with Jeg Jr. taking a narrow victory. In his runner-up finish in Pro Stock at the most recent NHRA race, Troy Jr. qualified No. 13 and defeated Kyle Koretsky, Erica Enders and Jason Line to reach the final round. In addition to his success in NHRA events, Troy Jr. also is regarded as one of the sport’s best E.T. bracket racers. He has accumulated several major victories including a $25,000 payday at the Atco Dragway Superbucks event and a $10,000 win the Spring Buck Blast at South Georgia Motorsports Park. He also won a $20,000 race at the Powerball of Bracket Racing event in Darlington, S.C. Mike Coughlin is a two-time Division 3 champion in the Top Sportsman class (2007-2009) and the defending Division 3 Top Dragster champion. His crew chief is Tony Collier. Mike is a 14-time NHRA national event winner. He has won national event titles in Pro Stock Truck, Super Comp, Top Sportsman and Top Dragster. Mike Coughlin
Mike also is a two-time U.S. Nationals winner. He won the Pro Stock Truck class in Indy in 1999 and 2001. Earlier this season at the JEGS SPORTSnationals at National Trail Raceway, Mike drove his JEGS.com dragster to the final round where he lost to world champion and current points leader Anthony Bertozzi. Mike began his career in the Super Gas and Super Comp classes in the 1980s and has extensive experience in the heads-up super classes. Paige Coughlin made her debut in the Super Comp class in 2017 and has raced part-time while continuing her education at Miami University of Ohio. Paige’s crew chief is Justin Beaver. Last year, Paige finished as the No. 2 ranked driver in the NHRA North Central Division Super Comp standings. She also earned a spot on the prestigious JEGS Allstars team for 2020. Before transitioning to the Super Comp class, Paige got her start in racing behind the wheel of a Jr. Dragster. Paige is the daughter of three-time NHRA Pro Mod series champion Troy Coughlin, and the younger sister of Troy Coughlin Jr. Makenna Brown got her start in the NHRA Jr. Drag Racing Series and recently made the transition to the Super Comp class. In her first full season in Super Comp, Makenna has raced in eight events and is currently ranked No. 37 out of more than 650 competitors. Overall, the Coughlin family, including John, Troy, Mike, Jeg Jr. and Troy Jr. have combined for 128 NHRA national event victories since 1990. The Coughlin’s have won in 11 different eliminators including Pro Stock, Pro Stock Truck, Pro Mod, Top Alcohol Dragster, Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, Top Sportsman and Top Dragster. Paige Coughlin
The Coughlin family has enjoyed incredible success at NHRA’s biggest event with a total of nine victories. In addition to the four wins by Jeg Jr., two more by Troy Jr., and two by Mike, Troy Sr. also won the 1991 Super Gas title. Brother John Coughlin also won Indy as a car owner when Brad Plourd drove his JEGS.com dragster to the 2005 U.S. Nationals Super Comp title. TEAM JEGS – By the Numbers5: Team JEGS entries in competition at this weekend’s NHRA event.7: Different classes where Jeg Coughlin Jr. has won at least one NHRA national event title (the only driver in history to do so)9: Indianapolis wins for Team JEGS. Four by Jeg Coughlin Jr., two by Troy Coughlin Jr., two by Mike Coughlin and one by Troy Coughlin Sr.11: Number of classes where the Coughlin family has earned an NHRA national event victory19: Top-10 finishes for Jeg Coughlin Jr. in the Pro Stock class since 1998127: Combined NHRA national event victories for the Coughlin family