Jeg Coughlin is the defending NHRA Pro Stock champion and is always a factor in the NHRA National coast-to-coast circuit. (Credit: NHRA photo)

By Lou Modestino

Reigning NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. will continue his title defense at this weekend’s event at New England Dragway in Epping, N.H. He will be racing the new Dodge Dart that was debuted last March in Gainesville, Fla.

Jeg Jr. drove the JEGS.com Dart to a semifinal finish in his most recent appearance at last weekend’s event in Bristol, Tenn. He defeated Kenny Delco and Vincent Nobile before losing on rare red-light start against Erica Enders-Stevens.

In his last three starts, Jeg Jr. has earned two wins, a runner-up, and a semifinal, making him the winningest NHRA pro in that span. His round-win record is 13-2 since winning the Atlanta race last month.

After appearing in three final rounds in the last four events, Jeg Jr. enters this weekend’s NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series event as the second-ranked driver in Pro Stock. He trails leader Erica Enders-Stevens by 155 points.

Jeg Jr. continues to race as a teammate to former NHRA Pro Stock champion Allen Johnson in 2014. His Dodge Dart is once again powered by Hemi engines from Johnson’s J&J Racing team and will be tuned by Johnson’s crew chiefs Mark Ingersoll and Adam Hornberger.

During his career, which began in 1997, Jeg Jr. has earned 14 top-10 finishes in the NHRA Pro Stock class.

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, he claimed the NHRA Super Gas championship in 1992.

This weekend’s event will mark the second appearance of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series at New England Dragway. Last year, Jeg Jr. drove to a semifinal finish in Epping.

After the first 10 events of the 2014 season, Jeg Jr. has a 19-8 record in Pro Stock elimination rounds. During last season’s championship run, he had an 19-9 record after the first 10 events.
Should he win this weekend’s event in Epping, Jeg Jr. will have won at least one NHRA national event at 25 different facilities. Other than Epping, the only current venue on the NHRA Mello Yello tour where he has not won is at the track in Norwalk, Ohio.

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 earlier this year in Gainesville behind the wheel of his new JEGS.com/Mopar Dodge Dart.

Jeg Jr. is one of just 15 professional racers to win 500 elimination rounds of NHRA competition, a feat he accomplished at the 2013 Topeka race. The only other Pro Stock drivers with 500 wins are Warren Johnson, Bob Glidden, and Greg Anderson.

Jeg Jr. is one of only three drivers, along with Peter Biondo and Scotty Richardson, to win national event titles in six different categories. He has won in Pro Stock, Comp, Super Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, and Top Dragster.

Jeg Jr. is the only professional racer in the history of NHRA to win a national event title from all 16 starting spots.

Of Jeg Jr.’s 552 career round-wins in Pro Stock, 92 have come via a starting-line holeshot, which is the most by any past or current NHRA Pro driver.

Jeg Jr. finished the 2013 season with four wins, four runner-up finishes, and seven semifinals in 24 events. For the season, he finished with a 48-20 record in eliminations, second only to Top Fuel champion Shawn Langdon, who finished with a 54-17 record.

During his Pro Stock career, Jeg Jr. has competed in 340 events and recorded 552 round-wins while incurring just 266 losses. He has failed to qualify just 16 times.

In his 340 career Pro Stock races, Jeg Jr. has reached the final round 96 times, recording 58 wins. Including his 16 sportsman victories, he has won a total of 74 times, tying him with Greg Anderson for eighth place on NHRA’s all-time wins list. During his career, he has appeared in 118 final rounds, 96 as a professional and 22 as a sportsman racer.

With 58-career Pro Stock wins, Jeg Jr. ranks fourth all-time among Pro Stock drivers. Only Warren Johnson (96), Bob Glidden (85), and Greg Anderson (74) have more titles.

The Coughlin family, including John, Troy, Mike, Jeg Jr., and Troy Jr., has combined for 102 NHRA national event victories since 1990. The Coughlins have won in nine different eliminators: Pro Stock, Pro Stock Truck, Pro Mod, Comp, Super Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, Top Sportsman, and Top Dragster.