Ohioan Coughlin takes provisional pole at home state race (NHRA/JEGS)

Ohioan Coughlin takes provisional pole at home state  race

NORWALK, Ohio (June 25) -- Five-time world champion Jeg  Coughlin Jr. 
earmarked this weekend's national event in his home state of Ohio  as one of the 
biggest races of the season for his JEGS.com Chevrolet Cobalt race  team. 
Between the national event itself and the $50,000 K&N Horsepower  Challenge, a 
race he won in 2009, the weekend presents twice as many chances to  find 
the winner's circle.

Just as he has so many times in the past,  Coughlin responded to the 
self-imposed pressure by driving to the provisional  pole with a stellar 6.658 at 
208.20 mph. It was a big moment for  Coughlin and his legion of friends, 
family members, co-workers, and fans who  made the drive up from the Columbus 
area to paint the track yellow and  black.

"When the sun went down and it started cooling off a bit with that  full 
moon shining, I think the crew chiefs got real excited," Coughlin said. "I  
knew it would be key to keep the car in the middle of the groove and make sure 
I  took it to the other end properly, and that's exactly what happened. 
It's a  great start to the weekend, especially with the K&N Horsepower 
Challenge  firing up in the morning. We needed to be hitting on all cylinders and we 
 are.

"The JEGS.com Chevrolet Cobalt has been going nice and straight for  the 
last four or five races and it responded well tonight and we were able to  
poke it into the 6.50 range, so we're really pleased. I don't think anyone else 
 ran a 6.50."

Adding to the anxiety of the evening session was the fact  four cars 
crashed prior to Coughlin's turn -- two in Pro Mod and two more in Pro  Stock. 
Fortunately, no one was injured, but the carnage sent a weird vibe  through the 
staging lanes.

"Pro Stock cars don't have big wings so we  definitely put as much angle as 
we could on there tonight," Coughlin said. "We  knew that would give us a 
bit more bite even at the expense of a little ET but  we were okay with that. 
I didn't see the two Pro Mod wrecks but I did watch the  two in Pro Stock 
and I knew from seeing that it would be vital to keep the car  in the middle 
of the track because the groove is narrow right now."

The  K&N Horsepower Challenge begins at noon EDT, with subsequent rounds at 
2:20  p.m. and 4:05 p.m.

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