Jeg Coughlin Jr. will begin his pursuit of a sixth NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock title (and seventh championship overall) at this weekend’s season-opening 58th Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com at historic Auto Club Pomona Raceway in Pomona, Calif. Coughlin will once again be driving a Rick Jones Race Cars-built Chevy Camaro as a member of the Elite Motorsports team.
Last season, Coughlin finished at the No. 7 ranked driver in the Pro Stock class. He finished in the top 10 for the 17th time in his pro career, which began in 1997.
Coughlin is once again racing as a teammate to two-time world champ Erica Enders. The Elite team also includes Pro Stock racers Vincent Nobile and Alex Laughlin. Coughlin’s crew chief is the multi-talented Rickie Jones, who has extensive experience as a driver, chassis builder and tuner. The Elite team also includes crew chiefs Rick Jones, Mark Ingersoll and Brian “Lump” Self, who regularly
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share data.
At last year’s Pomona opener, Coughlin qualified No. 7 in the field and defeated Deric Kramer in Round 1 before falling to Greg Anderson in the quarterfinals.
All told, Coughlin has six wins and seven runner-up finishes in Pro Stock competition in Pomona. He won the season-opening Winternationals in 1999 and 2000 and the season-ending Auto Club Finals in 1995, 2005, and 2007. He also won the special 50th anniversary event held in Pomona during the summer of 2001 as part of NHRA’s golden anniversary celebration.
In 1998, Coughlin made his first Pro Stock start at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona at the Winternationals and reached the final round. A year later, Coughlin defeated his older brother Troy in the final to win his first Winternationals Pro Stock title. The Coughlin brothers also raced in the final of the 1999 Denver event, where Jeg Jr. once again claimed the win.
In addition to his Pro Stock wins, Jeg Jr. was also a runner-up in the Super Stock class in Pomona at the 1995 Winternationals.
In 17 appearances at the Winternationals, Jeg Jr. has qualified in the top half of the field 13 times including a best of No. 2 (in 2000, 2008 and 2010).
In 17 career appearances at the Winternationals, Jeg Jr. has a 27-14 record in Pro Stock competition. His record is 61-30 in all events at Auto Club Pomona Raceway
Of his 27 round wins at the Winternationals, seven have come via a starting line holeshot. With 100 holeshot wins in his career, Jeg Jr. is the all-time leader among NHRA professional competitors.
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 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.
Including Auto Club Pomona Raceway, 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, Ohio, and Epping, N.H.
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.
Last season, Jeg Jr. became just the 10th NHRA racer to win 600 elimination rounds when he reached the semifinals in Topeka. He currently has 608 round wins. The other nine drivers with 600 wins are: John Force (1,286), Warren Johnson (874), Tony Schumacher (806), Greg Anderson (766), Kenny Bernstein (682), Larry Dixon (678), Ron Capps (678), Antron Brown (676) and Doug
Kalitta (623).
Kalitta (623).
Jeg Jr. is the only professional racer in history to win a national event from all 16 starting spots. During his Indy win in 2000, Jeg Jr. 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), Greg Anderson (90), and the late Bob Glidden (85) and have more titles.
In 405 career Pro Stock races, Jeg Jr. has reached the final round 102 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 list. During his career, Jeg Jr. has appeared in 126 final rounds, 102 as a professional and 24 as a sportsman racer.
During his Pro Stock career, Jeg Jr. has competed in 405 events and has a round-win record of 608-331. He has red-lighted just 22 times and failed to qualify just 16 times.
The Coughlin family, including John, Troy, Mike, Jeg Jr. and Troy Jr. has combined for 116 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
Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals edition
7 Different classes where Jeg Coughlin Jr. has won at least one NHRA national event title (the only driver to do so)
9 Pomona wins for the Coughlin family (six by Jeg Jr, two by Mike, and one by John Coughlin).
10 Number of classes where the Coughlin family has earned an NHRA national event victory
13 Final rounds in Pro Stock in Pomona for Jeg Coughlin Jr.
100 Holeshot wins by Jeg Coughlin Jr. in the Pro Stock class (tops among NHRA pro drivers)
116 Combined NHRA national event victories for the Coughlin family
Team Jegs PR
