(James Drew photo)

(Ron Lewis photo)

Coughlin comes from behind to win championship

Words compiled by Kay Burk
Photos by Bob Johnson, James Drew and Ron Lewis

Veteran racer Troy Coughlin faced long odds against him winning his first NHRA championship at the start of the 12th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals.

Winning the race was even more improbable considering the fact that Coughlin debuted a brand new car at the last race of the season. Coughlin, who was 42 points behind Pro Mod class leader Mike Castellana and in third place in points, won his Championship when Castellana went out in the second round and Coughlin went on to win the event in an all turbocharged car final round on Oct. 28.    

Although the racecar he had been driving got him to that point, Coughlin decided to switch to a 2013 R2B2-built Corvette in an last-ditch effort to gain two-plus rounds of racing with only four left on the table.

Needing everything to fall into place, Coughlin rode his new mount to a second consecutive victory that ultimately earned him the NHRA Pro Mod Series presented by ProCare Rx title by the slenderest of margins – three points.

"We came into this race with a brand-new car. We tested here with it a week ago and it was running well so we decided to enter it in the race. Of course, everyone else said we were crazy, but Steve Petty (crew chief) and all the guys worked so hard to give me a perfect car and, bottom line, it's so much easier to drive than anything I've had in the past. It worked perfectly all weekend and we needed every bit of it to get this title."