Jegs
Mike Coughlin looking for more after runner-up finish at SPORTSnationals
Makenna Brown continues to gain experience in Super Comp
TOPEKA, KS – It’s going to be another busy weekend for Team JEGS drag racers Mike Coughlin and Makenna Brown as they head to 
Heartland Motorsports Park for a double-header weekend of Division 5 action in the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series.
Reigning Division 3 Top Dragster champion Mike Coughlin is fresh off an impressive runner-up result at the annual JEGS SPORTSnationals, which concluded Sunday at National Trail Raceway in Ohio. His team, led by crew chief Greg Cody, hope to help the boss go one step further in Kansas.
“That was our first race of the year and we really didn’t have any issues at all,” Coughlin said. “We got as close to a win as you can get without winning but when you run into a guy like Anthony Bertozzi you know you’re racing one of the top 2-3 racers in the world. Every once in a while, you need a little luck. It’s hard to win round after round at this level.
“The JEGS.com dragster is happy, I’m pleased with my driving, and the guys — Greg, Tony Collier, Dave Ruark and Ryan Micke — are working well together. We had an awesome start and I hope it continues. When you have a situation like this where everything is clicking it’s just so much fun to race.”
Anthony Bertozzi nips Mike Coughlin to earn record fifth SPORTSnationals title
HEBRON, OH – Anthony Bertozzi, one of NHRA’s most decorated sportsman drag racers, passed another milestone Monday when he drove 
to the Top Dragster title during the rain-delayed final rounds at the JEGS SPORTSnationals. Bertozzi is now the most successful driver in the history of the event with five titles.
A total of 11 champions were crowned out of a starting field of more than 600 drivers who attended JEGS Speedweek at historic National Trail Raceway. In addition to Bertozzi, Chad Voges (Comp), Jeff Dona (Super Stock), Eric Campolito (Stock), Phillip Oakley (Super Comp), Dwight Nuest (Super Gas), Mark Smith (Super Street), John Benoit (Top Sportsman), and Bruce Sauer (Sportsman Motorcycle) all racked up wins.
Earlier in the weekend, Megan Meyer and D.J. Cox, each earned titles in Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car, respectively. All of the SPORTSnationals champions received a coveted copper NHRA Wally trophy.
Bertozzi earned his 24th NHRA national event title when he defeated Team JEGS driver Mike Coughlin in the final round. Like Bertozzi, Coughlin also has experienced a tremendous amount of success in SPORTSnationals races with four previous victories. In one of the best side-by-side races of the weekend, both drivers were nearly perfect off the starting line, but the win light shone in Bertozzi’s lane after Coughlin broke out with a 6.16 on his 6.18-second prediction. Despite the loss, it was hard for Coughlin to call the weekend anything other than a success.
JEGS SPEEDweek advances to more action with JEGS SPORTSnationals
HEBRON, OH – One day after winners were crowned in the Division 3 Lucas Oil Series event, JEGS Speedweek remained at full speed as the 
fields were set for the annual JEGS SPORTSnationals race.
Saturday’s packed schedule at National Trail Raceway included qualifying and elimination rounds for Top Alcohol Dragster, Top Alcohol Funny Car, Comp, Top Dragster and Top Sportsman. Also on the docket was the opening round in Super Comp, Super Gas, and Super Street drivers, plus class eliminations for Super Stock and Stock drivers.
Reigning world champion Megan Meyer and De l Cox Jr. emerged as the respective top qualifiers in Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car, two categories making their first SPORTSnationals appearance since 1985. Meyer drove to a 5.225-second elapsed time and also won her first-round race. She’ll be joined in the semifinals by Jackie Fricke, Mike Bucher, and Josh Hart.
Cox drove his Chevrolet Camaro Funny Car to a 5.518-second pass to lead Top Alcohol Funny Car. Like Meyer, Cox also emerged as a winner from Round 1 and is joined by two-time world champion Sean Bellemeur, Drew Hales, and Chris Foster in the final four.
First Division 3 race crowns winners as JEGS Speedweek powers forward
HEBRON, OH – Ronnie Bohn, Michael Volkman, and Doug Duell were among the winners crowned Friday night as part of the Division 3 Lucas Oil Series event at National Trail Raceway. Bohn won in Comp Eliminator, Volkman earned the Super Stock title, and Duell won in Stock Eliminator.
The other champions crowned Friday evening included Michael Handras (Super Comp), Greg Slack (Super Gas), Robert Bauer (Super Street), Danny Nelson (Top Dragster), and Curt Fredrich (Top Sportsman).
The North Central Division Lucas Oil Series event marks the first of two races that make up JEGS Speedweek, an event that has attracted more than 600 of the nation’s best sportsman drag racers.
Bohn drove his six-cylinder powered dragster to a victory over past JEGS SPORTSnationals winner Mike Farrell in the final round of Comp. Bohn, was the No. 2 qualifier in the quick field while Farrell was sixth quickest at the start of eliminations.
More than 600 racers fill National Trail Raceway as JEGS Speedweek begins
HEBRON, OH – Build it and they will come. The NHRA North Central Division and JEGS Mail Order worked together to organize JEGS Speedweek, which kicked off Thursday with more than 600 of the nation’s best sportsman drag racers getting to work at National Trail Raceway.
The historic event combines the first Lucas Oil Series Division 3 race of the season with the annual JEGS.com SPORTSnationals. The Division 3 race will take place Thursday and Friday, followed by the JEGS SPORTSnationals on Saturday and Sunday.
After Thursday’s opening rounds of qualifying, Frank Affronti (Comp), Rich South (Super Stock), Gary Summers (Stock), Lester Johnson (Top Sportsman) and J.B. Strassweg (Top Dragster) lead their respective fields. Racers in Super Comp, Super Gas, Super Street, and Sportsman Motorcycle also made time trial runs in preparation for Friday’s eliminations.
Comp leader Frank Affronti – Affronti drove his Chevy Cobalt to a run of 7.337 seconds to lead the Comp Eliminator field. A finalist at the 1999 U.S. Nationals, Affronti was able to hold off Ronnie Bohn, Scott Chamness, and Greg Kamplain, who all made solid qualifying runs themselves. Defending JEGS SPORTSnationals Comp winner Terry Smith is seeded No. 10 in the field. Smith can earn the coveted JEGS Crown trophy should he prevail during Sunday’s final eliminations.
Team JEGS expands to five drivers for JEGS Speedweek doubleheader
HEBRON, OH – There will be plenty of JEGS yellow and black at one of the high-performance auto parts giant’s biggest events of the year, 
JEGS Speedweek, a double-header race taking place Thursday-Sunday at historic National Trail Raceway.
Reigning divisional and regional champions Mike Coughlin and Troy Coughlin Jr. will be joined by Paige Coughlin, Makenna Brown and Jeff Taylor in representing JEGS.com in a variety of classes in both races.
JEGS Speedweek combines the first Lucas Oil Series Division 3 race of the season with the annual JEGS.com SPORTSnationals, a special national event exclusively for Sportsman racers. The D3 race will take place Thursday and Friday, followed by the SPORTSnationals on Saturday and Sunday.
“We have a whole lot of racing ahead of us this weekend and I’m very excited about it,” said Mike, the reigning D3 Top Dragster champion. “Aside from a little spin I took in Tony Collier’s bracket car a few weeks at Dragway 42, I haven’t raced since last fall so I’m absolutely ready to get back on the racetrack.
Jeg Coughlin Jr. surges into Pro Stock points lead after runner-up result at Indy
INDIANAPOLIS – Jeg Coughlin Jr. came within .016-seconds of collecting his second NHRA win of the season Sunday at the E3 Spark Plugs 
NHRA Nationals, and his strong runner-up effort in his JEGS.com Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro was enough to put him back into the points lead he held after winning the season-opener in Pomona, Calif., back in February.
Coughlin beat Elite Motorsports teammates Erica Enders and Bruno Massel, along with rival Chris McGaha, on the day before succumbing to Jason Line in an entertaining finale of the first NHRA professional event in four and a half months.
“We had a great day, a great weekend really,” Coughlin said. “Rather than qualify on Friday the NHRA allowed us a chance to test and our car was really strong right from the start. We did get two qualifying sessions Saturday and earned second place, so we were pleased with that. We felt really good here on race day and made a great run.
“It was special to be back racing again and to see some fans in person and put on a show for them. I know we’ve all missed drag racing and it’s a relief to be back at it. I think the NHRA did a great job keeping everyone healthy and safe.”
Jeg Coughlin Jr. and nephew Troy Coughlin Jr. looking strong at Indy 1
INDIANAPOLIS – Team JEGS Pro Stock drivers Jeg Coughlin Jr. and his nephew Troy Coughlin Jr. successfully qualified for the E3 Spark 
Plugs NHRA Nationals Saturday with some strong passes down Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis.
With only a pair of chances to make the cut due to an abbreviated two-day schedule at this event, five-time class champion Jeg Jr. raced his JEGS.com Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro to the lofty No. 2 starting slot, while first-timer Troy Jr. scratched his way into the 13th slot in Marty Robinson’s JEGS.com Elite Motorsports Ford Mustang.
“We had a really good feeling coming into today that we’d perform well but you never know until you drop the clutch,” Jeg Jr. said. “Rickie Jones (crew chief) and the yellow and black JEGS crew did a great job matching the car to the conditions in both sessions. We were second quickest this morning and third best this afternoon, less than a hundredth of a second off the leader both times, so we’re pleased.
“It sure felt great to get back in the car after this unprecedented time away. We won the NHRA’s season opener and the (unsanctioned) Doorslammer Nationals before the COVID virus arrived in March so we had a fantastic start to the season. You just don’t know what could change in a long break like we had but so far it appears we’re picking up right where we left off.”
JEGS fielding two Pro Stock cars in Indy, driven by Jeg Coughlin Jr. & Troy Coughlin Jr.
INDIANAPOLIS – The long silence is finally over. The best drag racers in the world roar back to life this weekend for the first time in four 
and a half months with the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway. It’s safe to say Team JEGS Pro Stock drivers Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Troy Coughlin Jr. couldn’t be happier to get back on the strip.
Jeg Jr. started off 2020 on fire, winning the season-opening NHRA Winternationals in Pomona and the one-off World Doorslammer Nationals in Orlando before the outbreak of COVID-19 halted all public gatherings. He currently sits just six points behind class leader and teammate Erica Enders, who won in Phoenix.
“I’m excited to get back to racing, and I’m sure everyone else is as well,” Jeg Jr. said. “Although we haven’t been competing professionally, the Elite team hasn’t rested and with as much prep time as we’ve had since the last pro race, shame on us if we’re not completely ready for this restart.
“I’m actually very confident in what we’ll be able to do. We had a great run going before the COVID pandemic, dating back into last season, with a strong run of wins and final-round appearances, and although it’s been nearly 140 days, we should still be right at the top of the charts.”
Paige Coughlin and Makenna Brown to represent JEGS at Ultimate 64 Shootout
XENIA, OH – A pair of powerful JEGS.com dragsters are headed to Kil-Kare Raceway for this weekend’s 15th annual Ultimate 64 Shootout. 
The yellow-and-black attack will be led by confirmed JEGS Allstars racer Paige Coughlin and her cousin Makenna Brown, who is stepping up from the Junior Dragster ranks this year.
While waiting out COVID-19 restrictions, Paige has been getting herself back up to speed with a pair of races in the last two weeks, the ACE Super Slam at Dragway 42 in West Salem, Ohio, and the K&N Spring Fling GALOT presented by Optima Batteries at GALOT Motorsports Park in Dunn, N.C.
“Just like it was last season, my JEGS.com dragster is running really well,” Paige said. “The main thing is it’s repeating, which is what you want out of your car more than anything. My guys, Justin Beaver and Tony Collier, always make sure I’m 100% ready to go and I thank them for all their hard work during this extra-long off-season.
“I’m so thankful to finally be able to race again. It was a long time out of the seat but once we got started again it felt like I’d never left. We are trying to stay as busy as possible and I know the schedule will be packed from here on out but we’ll be ready.”
