While drag racing’s current stars are battling for professional titles during this weekend’s Torco Race Fuels Route 66 Nationals at Route 66 Raceway, the stars of tomorrow will also be featured in the 23rd annual JEGS Allstars competition which is scheduled for Saturday, June 9. The JEGS Allstars race features 64 of the best sportsman competitors from each of NHRA’s seven geographic divisions. Those drivers, who have qualified for the right to attend the event by earning points during the previous 12-months, will be competing for a share of the more than $100,000 payout, including a $20,000 bonus for the overall team champions. The event will feature eight NHRA sportsman eliminators; Top Alcohol Dragster, Top Alcohol Funny Car, Competition Eliminator, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, and Super Street.
In addition to the posted awards, any driver who wins Saturday’s JEGS Allstars race and returns to win the Torco Route 66 Nationals on Sunday will be eligible for a double bonus courtesy of event sponsor JEGS Mail Order. Last year, Top Alcohol Funny Car great Frank Manzo claimed the bonus while Comp ace Larry Pritchett scored a double-victory in 2004. Current Top Fuel contender Morgan Lucas is also a member of that exclusive club, having won both Top Alcohol Dragster events in 2003.
Since the inception of the Allstars race in 1985, many of the current crop of NHRA pros have competed in the Allstars event including Lucas, two-time POWERade Pro Stock champ Jeg Coughlin Jr., current Top Fuel championship contender “Hot Rod” Fuller, Funny Car ace Tony Bartone, and late Top Fuel stars Blaine Johnson and Darrell Russell.
“I’ve been fortunate to have many great moments in my professional career but no matter how long I race, I will always remember my two wins in the Jegs Allstars, ” said Coughlin, who won the Allstars Super Gas title in 1991 and the Super Stock crown in 1997. “Next to competing for a championship, this race is probably the best test of skills for a sportsman racer. You are competing against the best racers in the country and every round is crucial to team success. The Allstars race is fun, but it can also be a lot of pressure. ”
Before landing his current ride behind the wheel of “Big Jim” Dunn’s Lucas Oil nitro Funny Car, Bartone cemented his status as one of the best Allstars contestants with three Top Alcohol Funny Car wins in 1994, 1996 and 2000. Likewise, Fuller, who drives David Powers’ Houston based Top Fuel dragster, has had success in the Allstars event, winning the Super Gas title in 1997. Other current pros who have qualified for the JEGS Allstars race include “Fast Jack” Beckman, Greg Stanfield, Larry Morgan, and Mike Strasburg
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