2007 NHRA NATIONAL EVENT SCHEDULE
Listen to Trackside Interviews with Champions, Drivers and Crew Chiefs
Robert Hight
Hillary Will
Bob Vandergriff
Dave Connolly
Ed Iskenderian
Cory McClenathan
Robert Hight
Jim Yates
Tony Bartone
Hillary Will
Whit Bazemore
Byron Hines
| John Coughlin victorious in Top
Dragster debut ORLANDO, Fla. – John Coughlin claimed his first victory of the young 2007 season when he drove his brand new JEGS.com entry to the Top Dragster title at the Southeast Division Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event at Orlando Speed World Dragway this weekend. Coughlin, who made just a handful of test passes in the new racer before the start of the event, turned in a nearly flawless performance in the final round against former IHRA champion and Million Dollar Race winner Troy Williams Jr. Coughlin began the run with a nearly perfect reaction time and finished with a 7.287 elapsed time on his dial in of 7.28-seconds. “It’s always a great feeling to win a race, but to win the first race of the year with a brand new car is extra special,” said Coughlin. “Even though I've only made a handful of runs in this car, I’m already very comfortable in it. Kurt Damron and his crew at Undercover Chassis built a great car and the men in the JEGS yellow and black also deserve a lot of credit for being competitive right out of the box." Coughlin also did his part with four very competitive reaction times during Top Dragster eliminations. In addition, Coughlin also raced his new Chevy Cobalt in Super Stock at the Orlando race and made it to the third round of eliminations before falling to former national event champion Lincoln Morehead. “I lost a close race to Lincoln but I can't complain about it,” said Coughlin. “Overall, I'd say I had a very good weekend. Normally, with two new race cars I'd have very modest expectations but after we tested last week, I felt that both cars could be competitive right off the bat and they were. Now, I believe we have something to build on for the rest of the season.” Coughlin will make his new appearance at this week’s AC Delco Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway. He will compete in Super Stock at that event. Coughlin’s next Top Dragster start will be the North Central Division Lucas Oil Series event at O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis, April 13-15. |
