By: Elite Motorsports
KENT, Wash. (July 21, 2024) – Jeg Coughlin Jr. and the SCAG Power Equipment / Outlaw Mile Hi Light Beer machine rallied to their third win of the season Sunday at the NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways just outside of Seattle.
Jeg Jr.’s 68th Pro Stock win was also the fifth consecutive victory from the Elite Motorsports camp. The largest team in NHRA Drag Racing began their streak with Jeg Jr.’s second victory of the season at Bristol Dragway before his nephew Tory Coughlin Jr. landed the JEGS.com / White Castle car in the winners circle in Epping, New Hampshire and then Aaron Stanfield and the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage / Melling Performance / Janac Brothers team earned back-to-back victories in Virginia and Ohio.
“It feels fantastic. It’s just kind of a corny statement, but the Elite team, as a whole has obviously done very well. We’ve won all but three of the events this year, which is a real testament to our stamina and our abilities,” Jeg Jr. said. “We’ve been struggling with some consistency, and we really feel like we’ve made the corner in multiple ways in the last two or three weeks, not because we’ve won the events, but because the cars have become more efficient, they’re accelerating better, and printing better time slips. So, you know, a real tip of the hat to our whole crew chief bank in the Elite pits.”
In the final round of the Northwest Nationals, Jeg Jr. would leave the starting line first and never trail against rival Dallas Glenn. The cat’s eye gold SCAG car would cross the finish line in 6.536 seconds at 209.95 mph defeating Glenn’s 6.541 at 209.07 for his second win at Pacific Raceways, his first came in 2002.
“Today was one of those days where I just felt good, I felt great all weekend,” Jeg Jr. said. “We made pretty good runs in qualifying, we were 10 but a couple thousandths and we would have been fifth or sixth. Pro Stock right now is just that tight. You’ve got to have a never surrender attitude form behind the wheel and from the crew chief bank as well. And that’s just what we had.”
En route to the finals, Jeg Jr. battled his way through teammate Jerry Tucker in the Outlaw Mile Hi Beer / SCAG car going 6.539 at 209.92 to better Tucker’s 8.077 at 129.53. In the second round, Jeg Jr. took on Eric Latino and laid down a 6.538 at 209.92 to send Latino’s 6.560 at 207.05 packing.
In the semifinals against Chris McGaha, Jeg. Jr would have another solid pass at 6.537 seconds and 209.82 mph with McGaha coming up short at 6.587 and 209.23. Also reaching the semifinals with Jeg Jr. was nephew Troy Jr. who battled past Pro Stock rookie Cory Reed, teammate and six-time world champions Erica Enders and the JHG / Melling team before coming up short to Glenn in the semis on a hole shot.
Walking away from the 11th of 20 races on the Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series schedule, the Elite Motorsports team holds three through eight in the points positions (3. Enders, 828; 4. Stanfield, 750; 5. Jeg Jr., 743; 6. Troy Jr., 617; 7. Tucker, 530; 8. Cristian Cuadra, 457).
The two-race Western Swing continues with the DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals at Sonoma Raceway July 26-28.
