Jeg Coughlin Jr. (born June 23, 1970, in
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, an ...
) is an American motorsports driver, competing in the
NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Pro Stock Division. He is a six-time world champion, winning the Pro Stock title five times and the Super Gas championship. He currently drives the SCAG Power Equipment / Outlaw Mile Hi Light Beer Pro Stock Camaro for Elite Motorsports as a teammate to three-time Pro Stock champion Erica Enders. He is the son of Jeg Coughlin Sr., the founder of
Jegs High Performance
JEGS High Performance is the second largest mail order company of automotive equipment in the United States. It sells performance auto parts, aftermarket accessories, tools, and race apparel. JEGS was founded by Jeg Coughlin Sr. in 1960 as a small ...
.
History
Jeg Coughlin Jr. won his first world championship in 1992 by winning the NHRA Sportsman Super Gas category.
Jeg Coughlin Jr. raced full-time in the NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Series in 1998 in Pro Stock, winning the Rookie of the Year award.
The following year, Coughlin won five events in Pro Stock, finishing second in the final season points standings. The next year he would double his win total for the season (10 wins in 14 finals), and would win his first NHRA Pro Stock Championship.
In 2001, Coughlin won three times, and in the course of the season he would set a national record for quickest elapsed time at
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading ( ; Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Reddin'') is a city in and the county seat of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city had a population of 95,112 as of the 2020 census and is the fourth-largest city in Pennsylvania after Phila ...
with a 6.750 second run (he has since surpassed that, taking nearly seven tenths of a second off his best time).
Driving a Chevrolet in 2002, Coughlin rolled to his second championship, including winning 8 of the final 12 events of the season. He couldn't duplicate that the following year, but he did set a personal best speed and finished in the top 5 in the points, winning twice. He beat his best speed and best time marks in 2004, but wasn't nearly as successful as he had been the previous years.
Coughlin changed teams that offseason, taking his sponsorship to Don Schumacher's team, and switching to Dodge Stratuses for the season. He didn't have a lot of success in 2005, but he managed to win the final race at Pomona, California before taking the 2006 season off.
Coughlin has been competing in the NHRA Lucas Oil Sportsman Series in 2006 and in the past, and has won 12 events. He has 46 combined wins in the Professional series and the Sportsman series.
In 2007, Coughlin drove the Jeg's Chevrolet Cobalt for Victor Cagnazzi Racing to the NHRA Powerade Pro Stock Championship. It was his full-time return to the Pro Stock class.
Coughlin collected three victories and his fourth NHRA Pro Stock Championship in 2008. He went to five final rounds with three of them coming in the NHRA Countdown to One. His consistency throughout the season never dropped him below fourth in the championship points.
After sitting out the 2011 season, Coughlin returned to the quarter mile in 2012, driving a Dodge Avenger with Mopar and JEGS sponsorship.
On November 10, 2013, Coughlin won his 5th Pro Stock championship after
Jason Line Jason Line (born July 24, 1969 in Wright, Minnesota) drives the KB Racing Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro Pro Stock car in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. Line resides in Terrell, North Carolina with his wife, Cindy, son, Jack and daughte ...
lost in round 2 in Pomona.
Coughlin debuted his JEGS.com/Mopar Dodge Dart at the
NHRA
The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is a drag racing governing body, which sets rules in drag racing and hosts events all over the United States and Canada. With over 40,000 drivers in its rosters, the NHRA claims to be the largest motorspo ...
Gatornationals for the 2014 season. He won two races in six final-round appearances.
Coughlin made three starts for Elite Motorsports in 2015, reaching the final in Seattle.
For 2016, Coughlin returned to full-time competition with Elite Motorsports, driving a Dodge Dart as Erica Enders' teammate.
Coughlin holds several NHRA records. Coughlin is the only driver to collect victories in four categories in one season, when in 1997 he won on Pro Stock, Super Stock, Competition, and Super Gas.
He is also the only professional drag racer to win from all 16 qualifying spots.
Plus, Coughlin is the only driver to win a national event in seven different classes: Pro Stock, Comp, Super Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas and Top Dragster.
References
External links
Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coughlin, Jeg Jr.
Dragster drivers
NHRA drivers
1970 births
Living people
Racing drivers from Columbus, Ohio