Championship Drag Racing

NHRA Route 66 Nationals
Chicago, Ill.
(May 20-23)

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King Demon Crown

Jeg Coughlin Jeg's Mail Order Chevrolet

Reports: Sunday Saturday Friday Pre-race

Chicago, Sunday: Two-time NHRA Pro Stock champion Jeg Coughlin, Jr started race day from the No. 5 qualifying position. The 33-year old second generation driver moved the bar up again by qualifying for his 44th straight event and continues to hold the longest active qualifying streak in NHRA's most competitive professional class.

Coughlin faced off against fellow Ohio Pro Stock driver Mark Pawuk in the opening round. Lane choice went to the Jeg's Mail Order Chevy Cavalier and the yellow and black car rolled into the left lane to begin the battle.

The starting line advantage went to Pawuk by .019 seconds (.026 to .045). The Jeg's machine made a move toward the center line and recovered down track. The win light went to Coughlin and the Jeg's Mail Order team by .0195 at the stripe. He posted a quicker run of 6.852 at 201.07 mph.

"We left a lot on the table in the opening round," explained Coughlin. "I felt the sway bar move around just after the car launched from the starting line. It really upset the car took some aggressive steering to get it back to the center of the groove."

In the second round the 45-time NHRA national event winner went head-to-head against Dave Connolly, who also is another fellow Ohio Pro Stock driver. Connolly grabbed a .009 second advantage (.014 to .023) over Coughlin off of the line. The win went to Connolly by .0409 seconds at the finish line. Jeg ran 6.865 at 201.01 mph.

"We were expecting to go a couple of more rounds today," explained Coughlin. "We made a couple of errors that prevented us from being more of a threat on race day. Our group is working hard to get these yellow and black Jeg's cars back into the winner's circle. We will just pick up the pieces and head to Topeka."

Chicago, Saturday: Two-time NHRA Pro Stock champion Jeg Coughlin, Jr entered the final day of qualifying needing to break into the quick-16 from the No. 19 position.

In addition to the pressures of qualifying Coughlin was also racing in the King Demon Crown, which is the annual specialty race for eighth elite Pro Stock drivers. This was the fifth time Coughlin has raced in the event since he started competing full time in NHRA Pro Stock. Coughlin has won the event twice in his career (1999 & 2000). The first and second rounds of the King Demon Crown counted as qualifying runs for the select drivers racing in the specialty event.

Jeg Coughlin faced off against Mike Edwards in the opening round. Lane choice went to Coughlin and he took the preferred left lane. The Jeg's Mail Order Chevy Cavalier took the starting line advantage by .009 seconds (.030 to .039) and never looked back. Coughlin took the win light and broke into the field with an impressive run of 6.842 at 201.88 mph.

"I got on the radio right after the guys told me what I ran in the first round of the King Demon Crown and said I feel a lot better now," explained Coughlin. "I know I wasn't the only one on our team that felt that way. We all had a lot of pressure on us and the good teams make it happen when your backs are against the wall. We have a great team and today was just another example of how solid our program is and how dedicated our team is. We rose to the occasion when we had to and moved all the way up to the No. 4 spot."

In the second round of the King Demon Crown and final qualifying session Coughlin went head-to-head with fellow Ohio Pro Stock driver Dave Connolly. Lane choice once again went to the yellow and black Jeg's Mail Order entry and the car rolled into the left lane.

The starting line advantage went to Connolly by .009 seconds (.030 to .039). Both cars looked like they were welded together at the door handles as they fought for the win light. The margin of victory was .0106 at the stripe and it went to Connolly. Jeg posted a run of 6.834 at 201.58 mph.

"That was a great side-by-side Pro Stock race," said Coughlin. "We were just a little short today, but we are going in the right direction. We feel very good going into eliminations tomorrow. The car is work well and we are looking forward to having a solid performance on race day."

The 33-year old second generation driver continues to hold the longest active qualifying streak in NHRA's most competitive professional class. Coughlin has now qualified for 44 straight events. The last race he failed to qualifying at was in 2002 at this same event.

Jeg Coughlin landed in the No. 5 qualifying position. Coughlin and his Jeg's Mail Order Chevy Cavalier will have lane choice over fellow Ohio Pro Stock driver Mark Pawuk in the opening round.

Chicago, Friday: After the first of two days of qualifying for the 7th annual NHRA Route 66 Nationals Jeg Coughlin is sitting in the No. 19 position. The Jeg's Mail Order Chevy Cavalier posted a run of 6.907 at 195.31 mph.

Jeg Coughlin will go into the final day of qualifying on the outside looking in. The 33-year old second generation driver holds the longest active qualifying streak in NHRA's most competitive professional class. Coughlin has qualified for 43 straight events. The last race he failed to qualifying at was in 2002 at this same event.

"We had some mechanical issues that hurt our performance in both qualifying sessions today," explained Coughlin. "The good thing is they have both already been addressed and we should be fine tomorrow. The pressure will be on tomorrow with the King Demon Crown race and us fighting to get into the quick-16 qualifying positions for race day. "

There are two remaining qualifying sessions that will be held tomorrow (Saturday) before the field is set for the 7th annual NHRA Route 66 Nationals. The sessions are scheduled for 12:15 PM and 3:00 PM respectively.

Jeg Coughlin is currently in the No. 5 position in the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock championship with 16 races remaining. His best finish so far this season has been a runner-up at the Mac Tools Gatornationals.

The 33-year-old, second-generation driver continues to hold the longest active qualifying streak in NHRA's most competitive professional class. Coughlin has now qualified for 43 straight events. The last race he failed to qualifying at was in 2002 at the first of two races held annually at Route 66 Raceway in Chicago.

"We are going to do some testing in St. Louis on Wednesday and Thursday before heading to Route 66 Raceway," said Coughlin. "Our cars went straight to Jerry Bickel's (chassis builder) shop after Atlanta to be looked over and have any changes made that need to be. Our biggest obstacle has been getting our cars to consistently go straight from the starting line. We know Jerry and his group are capable of getting us back on track so we can win races. Everyone on our team has been work endless hours to get us back into the winner's circle."

Coughlin has a total of 45 career wins and ranks 10th on the all-time NHRA win list. He has won 33 races in Pro Stock, seven in Super Stock, four in Super Gas, and one in Competition Eliminator. In addition, he won the 1992 NHRA championship in Super Gas and has brought home two professional titles (2000 & 2002) in Pro Stock.