Jeg Coughlin in good spot to take a big shot at Seattle (NHRA/JEG'S)

NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series
NHRA CarQuest  Northwest Nationals   
 
 
 
Pacific Raceways
Seattle, WA
July 22nd
 
Jeg Coughlin - JEG'S Mail  Order / Mopar - Dodge Stratus RT 
Friday Summary





Jeg Coughlin in good spot to take a big shot at  Seattle

Following a familiar pattern, Pro Stock driver  Jeg Coughlin opened a race 
weekend with two progressively quicker elapsed times  in Friday's first two time 
trail sessions of the 18th annual CARQUEST Auto Parts  NHRA Nationals. The 
Jeg's Mail Order Dodge Stratus R/T driver started his  weekend at Pacific 
Raceways with a 6.42-second pass at 204.32 mph before  improving to a 6.723 at 
204.79 mph in the cooler evening round to finish the day  a solid ninth in the 
standings.

"We started off pretty well and were No.  5 after the first session," 
Coughlin said. "We really got after it tonight and  we did manage to improve but we 
didn't get the E.T. we wanted and ended up  slipping down to ninth. It's a good 
position to be in when you're slightly  disappointed with being ninth in this 
class.

"Tomorrow morning we run  early and in my opinion that will be the premier 
session of qualifying for our  class. It should be cool and dry, which is 
absolutely perfect for these pro  Stock cars. We saw both track records fall tonight 
and they could be in serious  jeopardy tomorrow. I hope we can make a good 
run and improve our  spot."

Coughlin's teammate Richie Stevens, who pilots an  identically-prepared 
Stratus, drove under the old track elapsed time record of  6.699 seconds with a 
lightning-quick 6.691 at 205.82 mph. Since the two crews  share data, Coughlin is 
hopeful that the information Stevens gained will help  his hot rod go quicker.

"The two-car team approach has served us well  this year," Coughlin said. 
"It's exciting to see Richie run well because I know  our two teams will be able 
to pour over that data and make both of our cars  quicker."

The Pro Stock set will get another chance at Pacific Raceways  at 10:30 a.m. 
Saturday morning. The conditions are expected to be optimal.
 
 
NHRA on TV:
 
Saturday, July 23 ESPN2 will televise two-hours of qualifying at 8:00 p.m.  
(ET)
Sunday, July 24 ESPN2 will televise NHRA2Day, a 30-minute weekly news  
magazine style show at 11:30 a.m. (ET)
Sunday, July 24 ESPN2 will air final eliminations for three-hours beginning  
at 9:00 p.m. (ET)