TROY COUGHLIN EXCITED ABOUT 2007
Thu, 2007-01-04 17:22
Fresh off his most successful drag racing season to date, Troy Coughlin is
looking at 2007 as his best opportunity yet to achieve his ultimate goal of a
world championship. Coughlin rode an impressive streak of four runner-up
finishes in seven national events to a second-place finish in the National
Muscle Car Association's Pro Street category in '06. Now he hopes to parlay that
on-track success to a title run in the 10-race AMS Pro Mod Challenge in the NHRA
POWERade Drag Racing Series.
"If nothing else, 2006 was a great year for building our confidence as a
team," Coughlin said. "I feel like my driving was some of the best I've ever
done, but that was a direct result of the enormous confidence I had in my team.
Race after race and pass after pass, I knew I had the best racecar possible.
"When a driver reaches the top level of trust in his team and equipment and
can concentrate solely on driving, that's when good things come at you in
bunches. We saw that in 2006, especially down the stretch when we went to three
finals in a row. I know we're going into '07 with a great deal of
momentum."
Although Pro Street and Pro Mod are vastly different as far as the racecars
and equipment the drivers and teams utilize, the incredible elapsed times and
speeds posted in the two categories are fairly similar. Coughlin will be making
a slight step up from his JEGS Mail Order Chevrolet Cavalier Pro Street car that
posted 6.4s at 210 mph, to a brand-new turbo-charged JEGS Mail Order Pontiac
capable of 6.0-second passes at speeds in excess of 230 mph.
"This car is the nicest thing I've ever driven and the power you feel when
the turbo kicks in and you get thrown back in the seat is such a rush," said
Coughlin, a 42-year-old from Delaware, Ohio. "We'll be testing like crazy before
the season begins so I can get as many passes under my belt as possible, but
with this group of guys behind me I know it won't be long until we're running
with the best of them. It's a very exciting time for me."
The AMS Pro Mod Challenge series is allowing turbo-charged cars in
competition and they've let racers running the combination know that changes to
the rules could be made as the season progresses. But that uncertainty doesn't
seem to bother Coughlin at all.
"If I had a new team I might be concerned but everyone in this JEGS group
is so good at what they do," Coughlin said. "If you think about it, the teams
that win championships are the ones that overcome adversity the best. We all
face challenges out there. It's the guys that answer the call that come out on
top.
"This group gave me a racecar that made it down the track every pass in
2006. It didn't matter whether it was cold or hot, humid or dry, bad air or
killer conditions, they made the changes necessary to keep me competitive. And
we had plenty of races where the conditions changed dramatically from one day to
the next. I'm not worried about this group at all. They'll take any obstacles we
have thrown at us in stride.
"The bottom line is that we need to go out there and race the best Pro Mod
drivers in the world as hard as we can. I look at the preseason list of entries
and I see a dozen teams that can win it all. I'd like to think we're one of
them. I guess we'll find out soon enough."
To keep his driving sharp, Coughlin will continue to run his Pro Street car
at select NMCA events as well in 2007. Coughlin's Pro Mod schedule will take
priority, but he will run his proven Cavalier at all NMCA races that don't
conflict with the Pro Mod schedule.
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