ORLANDO, Fla. – Troy Coughlin Jr. will begin his tenure as the primary driver of the JEGS.com Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro during the second annual CTech Manufacturing World Doorslammer Nationals presented by JEGS.
The event takes place this weekend at Orlando Speed World Raceway.
At last year’s inaugural event, Coughlin’s uncle Jeg Coughlin Jr. emerged victorious from a stacked field of Pro Stock superstars to claim the trophy.
But Jeg Jr. has since retired, handing the controls of the JEGS.com hot rod to his nephew.
“It’s an absolute honor to take Uncle Jeg’s place in this car and as the defending champs of this really cool event,” Troy Jr. said. “He’s a legend in this sport and one of my all-time heroes and he left us in great shape to contend for round wins and race wins right out of the trailer.
“There’s a huge excitement level for this race. It’s the very best of the NHRA going up against all the top door-slammer drivers from across the country. Whenever you have a race where the winner takes home $75,000, you’re gonna bring out all the big hitters. It feels like a huge bracket race with a healthy dose of the outlaw culture.
“It’s a different kind of spark, and I’m enjoying it.”
Troy Jr. and team will be making several test runs Wednesday and Thursday to dial-in the tune-up. Official qualifying for the event begins with one round of action Friday evening, followed by two more sessions Saturday.
The elimination bracket will be set by a random draw just before Sunday’s opening round of racing.
“We hope to make as many runs as possible to gain as much data as we can,” Troy Jr. said. “These will be our first runs of the year, so it’ll feel great to let out the clutch, knock that rust off, and take this JEGS Chevy through the gears. The car’s basically the same as when Uncle Jeg got out of it last year. We just inserted my seat and clutch pedal.
“I have a real desire to start off strong with this group. The best way to show my appreciation for all the hard work they put in is to win that big paycheck on Sunday so we can spread the love around. I’m so excited to get started.”
This is the second year the World Doorslammer Nationals will be presented by JEGS, the mail-order high-performance parts giant that has supported the sport of drag racing since its inception 60-plus years ago.