Mike Coughlin won the Top Sportsman title at the NHRA Division 3 Lucas Oil Series event at Route 66 Nationals and a few minutes later he watched as his brother John joined him in the winner’s circle by claiming a victory in the Top Dragster class.
In the Top Sportsman final, Mike drove his JEGS.com Chevy Cobalt to a win over current points leader Billy Vaughn. Mike gained the reaction time advantage at the start and then finished the nearly flawless run by running right on his 7.02 dial in while Vaughn broke out, running under his 7.11 dial with a 7.09.
Watching his brother turn on the win light only helped to motivate John Coughlin, who claimed his second Top Dragster title of the season with a slowing 7.86 after his final round opponent, Brian Folk, red-lighted at the start. John has now won two of the three Top Dragster races he has entered with his new Undercover Chassis dragster and he has built a sizable lead in the Division 3 points standings.
“Weekends like this are the ones you dream about,” said Mike. “Winning any race is great, but when you can share it with one of your brothers, it’s the best feeling in the world. My car ran flawlessly all weekend and I was very comfortable with my driving. I managed to find a groove early and stayed there. As soon as I got out of my car and looked down track so I could see John’s run. I was already pretty happy but I got really pumped up when I saw his win light on.”
The victories for the Coughlin brothers came exactly one week after their younger brother, Jeg won the Pro Stock title at the Torco Race Fuels Nationals, also held at Route 66 Raceway. It also provided the perfect father’s day gift for family patriarch Jeg Coughlin Sr., who spent the weekend at the fifth annual Holley NHRA National Hot Rod Reunion presented by Soff Seal at National Trail Raceway, where he served as the event’s Grand Marshal. Ironically, this is not the first time that the Coughlin brothers have won a race on father’s day. In 2003, John won the Super Stock title and Mike captured the win in Super Comp at the Pontiac Excitement Nationals in Columbus.
“I think you could say the JEGS team is having a pretty good month,” said John. “I was really excited for Mike when he won but I also had to calm down and focus on winning my race. When I brought this new car out this year I believed that we could be competitive, but I wouldn’t have predicted that I’d win two of the first three races. That’s almost too much to ask.”
The Coughlin brothers will now head home to celebrate the wins with their families and their associates at JEGS Mail Order and prepare for the next Division 3 Lucas Oil Series event, which will be held June 23-24 at Mid-Michigan Motorplex in Stanton, Mich.
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