This weekend’s POWERade Drag Racing Series event in Norwalk, Ohio, will mark the landmark 200th race for two-time Pro Stock champion Jeg Coughlin Jr., who is coming off back-to-back final-round appearances in his JEGS.com Chevrolet Cobalt with a win and a runner-up finish to his credit in the last three weeks.
Coughlin arrives at this special point in his professional career with enviable statistics. His 35 Pro Stock wins and 21 runner-up results in the 199 races he’s previously entered translates to one final-round showing per 3.5 races, with victories coming every 5.6 events. His 323-152 race day record yields a winning ratio of 68 percent, the fourth-best ever among racers in all four professional categories.
“I’ve been lucky enough to have raced some awesome cars, including the one (team owner) Victor Cagnazzi has me in right now, ” Coughlin said. “Of course there has been an army of talented people behind me all these years, none better than the group at Cagnazzi Racing. It’s very humbling, really, to hear those stats. “
Family patriarch Jeg Coughlin Sr. will make the hour-and-a-half drive north from his home in Delaware, Ohio, to attend this weekend’s race in Norwalk. Senior has been a sounding board for the crewmen on his son’s team since JEGS.com took over primary sponsorship of the team. They’ve been to the final round at the two races since Senior has been around.
Former short track world champion Gary St. Amant arrives at Salem Speedway in Salem, Ind., for this Saturday’s Lucas Oil 200 presented by Kmart with the USAR Hooters Pro Cup Northern Division points lead and a brand-new racecar that he says is even quicker than the one that’s carried him to the top of the world rankings.
St. Amant’s new No. 7 JEGS.com/Speedco Chevrolet Monte Carlo is lighter, quicker, and custom-made for St. Amant’s driving style—a combination he hopes will only improve his position in the current standings.
That could be bad news for the racers chasing St. Amant, who won the now-defunct American Speed Association title in 1998 and 2000. In four races with his old chassis, St. Amant has posted finishes of fifth, third, third, and 12th, a steady resume that put him in the points lead after just two events. He’s held the No. 1 designation ever since.
Team JEGS chef Nicky Morse has prepared meals for royalty, distinguished diplomats, and Ohio’s ultra wealthy at the only four-star restaurant in Columbus, Ohio. He’s cooked for country music’s brightest stars as part of the support crew for CMT’s “Showcase” program. He’s mentored young apprentices at Ohio State University, and worked elbow-to-elbow with Wolfgang Puck to raise money for cancer research.
This season, racing’s most decorated chef has been opening his personal cookbook to race fans and members of the media by featuring one of his own creations for each race on the 2007 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series. Complete with step-by-step instructions, Morse divulges a complete recipe on TeamJEGS.com that will allow budding cooks a chance to create a masterpiece of their own at home.
For Norwalk, Chef Nicky presents his Smoked Salmon Potato Cake, which he describes as “a true pleasure to your taste buds. ”
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