NHRA
Tough Weekend for Janis in Ohio
Courtesy of: Mike Janis Racing Inc.
Photos By: Mike Janis Racing
Elma, NY– The old saying “If it wasn’t for bad luck I’d have none at all” definitely fits Mike Janis’ 2011 Norwalk 
experience. The trying weekend began on Wednesday before the event when Janis and Co- Crew Chief, Kevin Peters, found themselves with a blown out tire and broken leaf spring on the team’s trailer. Luckily they had all the parts needed in the trailer. So, in the wee hours of the morning and on the side of a highway Janis and Peters fired up the generator and completed the repairs themselves.
Once at the track the bad luck followed the team into Friday when all racing was cancelled due to rain leaving two runs on Saturday to get into the show. On his first run Janis pedaled his Eaton Aeroquip Mustang to a 6.13 elapsed time. In the second session Janis’s bad luck continued when he was plagued by parts failure slowing him to a 6.22 leaving him to sweat out the rest of qualifying. Luckily the previous 6.13 run held up leaving Janis in the 16th qualifying spot.
Coughlin readies new car after strong qualifying effort in Norwalk
Courtesy of Jegs
NORWALK, OH – Having reached the full potential with the turbocharged, small-block engine in his JEGS.com Pontiac, Troy Coughlin looks to a future with a new racecar for the 
Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.
Coughlin fell in the first round of Pro Mod action Saturday night at Norwalk after making a nice pass of 6.098 seconds at 240.38 mph. But No. 5 qualifier Dennis Radford simply had a better racecar, going 5.974 seconds at 236.96 mph.
“Dennis is doing a really good job with their program,” Coughlin said. “He’s fast, and he’s consistently fast. We’re good friends, so if I can’t win, I’d like to see him do well.”
Coughlin and the JEGS.com Pro Mod team will turn to a new ’68 Camaro with a turbocharged 540 cubic inch engine for the next race, Sept. 3-5, at the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis.
AEROSPACE COMPONENTS NHRA UNLEASHED AND NMCA TO JOIN FORCES
Courtesy of NHRA Unleashed
GLENDORA, CA —It was announced today that the Aerospace Components NHRA Unleashed program will combine forces with the National Muscle Car Association (NMCA) to 
deliver an unparalleled offering of fun and close side-by-side racing for fans and competitors alike. The popular Aerospace Components NHRA Unleashed program, which was formed in 2010, will be featured at five NMCA events for the remainder of the 2011 season.
NHRA has revised the 2011 Aerospace Components NHRA Unleashed class rules and official schedule. Moving forward, the Unleashed classes will be featured at the following NMCA events: Auto Club Dragway at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana (July 8-10); Beech Bend Raceway in Bowling Green, Ky. (Aug. 5-7); Milan Dragway, Milan, Mich. (Aug. 26-28); Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis, (Oct. 6-9); and Royal Purple Raceway, Houston (Nov. 11-13).
Troy Coughlin and son looking for double win in home state of Ohio
Courtesy of Jegs
NORWALK, Ohio (June 22) – This weekend’s NHRA drag race in northeast Ohio will be a special one for JEGS.com 
drivers Troy Coughlin, his son Troy Jr., and daughters Meghan and Paige. That’s because the site of the race is just 80 miles from JEGS headquarters in Delaware, Ohio, the Coughlin’s longtime hometown.
“Norwalk is a great racetrack,” Coughlin said. “I’m excited to get there. We’ve got more than 300 JEGS associates who are going to come up, hang out, and watch the races. We’ve got to do well there in front of all them.
“And we’ll have a lot of family along for the ride as well. The Coughlin family’s pretty big, and my wife’s family also is coming out. It should be a slew of people, but it’ll be a good time. Talk about a support group – it’ll be pretty awesome.
Canadian to race Top Fuel and Pro Modified at Norwalk
Courtesy of Tim Miller
Photo by Roger Richards
TOTTENHAM, ON – The upcoming Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals will be Ike Maier’s third big-league event for 2011 behind the wheel of the Paton Racing Top Fuel Dragster.
The June 24-26 race at Summit Motorsports Park at Norwalk, Ohio, will also be Maier’s third race with his Pro Modified this year as he will be competing in the two divisions with totally different race cars.
“You have to stay focused on each,” noted Maier about his plan on competing in a full-bodied, front-engined, rear drive Pro Mod and then stepping into the ultimate in the sport of drag racing, an 8000-horsepower, rear-engined, rear drive Top Fueler. The Pro Mod, with less than half the horsepower of the Top Dragster, will be raced on the traditional quarter-mile, while the fuel car is raced to the 1000-foot marker, a policy instituted by the NHRA two years ago.
Janis Looking Forward to Homecoming of Sorts at Norwalk
Courtesy Mike Janis Racing
Photos By Roger Richards (2000)
Elma, NY– The recent performance of Mike Janis and his Eaton Aeroquip Mustang has many in his home area of Western New York looking forward to attending this weekend’s 5th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA 
Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio.
“Of all the NHRA tracks we run at I would say I’ve raced at Norwalk the most. I’ve been running there for… gosh several decades,” laughed Janis. “Norwalk is the closest national event track for us, just three and a half hours from our shop, Jan-Cen Motorsports in Elma, NY.”
“It’s been a busy week back at the shop. People have been coming in to the shop all week telling us that they have been watching what we have been doing and that they are going to Norwalk to cheer us on. My Mom, sister and brothers are coming along with other family members and friends. It’s going to be a busy weekend in our Pit area,” added Janis.
Roy Hill & Grant Lewis Take Top Two Qualifying Spots in Bristol
Courtesy of Roy Hill Racing
BRISTOL, TN – The extensive testing Roy Hill did before the 11th annual Ford NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals 
presented by Tri-Cities Area Ford Dealers paid off in Bristol, as Hill and teammate Grant Lewis occupied the top two qualifying positions in the Super Stock category.
Lewis, from Jesup, GA, put the Goodyear Ford Mustang Cobra Jet on the pole with an 8.841 second pass, while Hill piloted the Coca-Cola/Alsco car to an 8.886 second elapsed time, good enough for the second starting spot. Hill had been working to bring his car’s performance on par with the second team car, and the one-two showing was the end result.
Janis Hopes Recent Performance Will Aid the Search for New Marketing Partners
Photos By Johan Lindberg
Elma, NY– In the last three races Mike Janis and his Eaton Aeroquip backed team has begun their climb up the point’s ladder. The Elma, NY based team has seemingly found the consistency that all drag race teams look for.
“We have made some very good progress these last three or four races. We have a unique combination that no one else out here is running so we are forced to learn from our own mistakes. Our converter program has helped us not just behind the bellhousing but in front of it. It has forced us to look at things that we never paid much attention to in the past. We are going for the Championship. Hopefully we can keep going rounds and make enough noise for people to want to become marketing partners with our team; it’s getting rough out here fighting the bigger teams.” We are looking for partners this year and especially major and associate sponsors for the 2012 season, added Janis.
While the new torque converter program that Janis is running may have helped the team find consistency it has also helped award them with a 75 pound weight penalty. The NHRA has implemented a new rule adding 75 pounds to any vehicle in Pro Mod competition utilizing a torque converter. This will once again force the Janis team to learn what their combination will teach them.
Troy Coughlin returns to site of career-best outing looking for more
Courtesy of Jegs
BRISTOL, TN – The last time Troy Coughlin won an event at Bristol Dragway he was awarded the largest cash prize of his career. This time through, the world champion drag racer would be happy with a simple little statue — the 
special-edition 60th anniversary pewter Wally awarded to the winner of the Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series event to be held in conjunction with this weekend’s Ford Thunder Valley NHRA Nationals.
“We won the Winston Showdown and earned $50,000,” Coughlin said of his Y2K triumph in Pro Stock. “That was a cool deal, for sure, but that was more than 10 years ago. It’s time to make some new Bristol memories and winning our first Pro Mod race of the season and getting one of those rare Wallys would be very special.”
Racing crew chief Jake Hairston’s twin turbocharged 2008 Pontiac GTO until his new car is ready, Troy has become a bit of a cult hero on tour this year as he pits his small block machine up against the giant motor combinations of his rivals. But after posting a few competitive 5.9-second passes, he’s become more than just a sideshow.
Chris Demke and Maddern Racing Are Top Gun Bound
Courtesy of Maddern racing
Fallon, NV – Mid way through the 2011 drag racing season, Chris Demke and the Top Alcohol Dragster Team of 
Maddern are making their way 63 miles east of Reno to compete at Top Gun Raceway. This event marks the teams seventh appearance this year.
The Peen Rite / Clean Boost Performance Oil Team goes into this race as the Division 7 points leader as well as the Division 7 Jegs Allstars points leader and holding strong in 3rd place within the National Points Chase.
“We’ve done pretty well so far this year” notes Demke, “we have a good, consistent race car and we are very hungry to improve our position within the National Championship Points Series.
