With all the rain that fell on U.S. 131 Motorsports Park over the weekend, a drought might have been the last thing anyone in Michigan was thinking about.
Troy Coughlin Jr. had one to end.
Forty-one races had passed since Coughlin last stood in an NHRA Pro Stock winner’s circle, a stretch dating to Epping, New Hampshire, in 2024. On Monday, after rain pushed the inaugural Dodge NHRA Great Lakes Nationals presented by MOPAR into an extra day, Coughlin finally washed away a dry spell of his own.
And this was no ordinary trophy waiting at the other end, at least in his mind.
Coughlin defeated Matt Hartford in the final round, running 6.515 seconds at 209.69 mph to Hartford’s 6.527 at 208.14. His .020 reaction time gave him the starting-line advantage over Hartford’s .031, and Coughlin never trailed on the way to his sixth career Pro Stock victory.
The payoff was one of NHRA’s commemorative Diamond Wally trophies, created for the sanctioning body’s 75th anniversary season.
For Coughlin, a student of drag racing history who readily admits to being romantic about the sport’s past, ending the wait with that particular trophy hit differently.
“Extremely exciting. Lots of emotions,” Coughlin said. “I love the history of drag racing. It’s something that’s in my blood and I’ve always kind of been pretty romantic about, and to celebrate the 75th year of this existence of this awesome series, to get a special Diamond Wally is pretty majestic.”
Coughlin didn’t back into this one. He qualified eighth with a 6.539 at 208.72 mph, then went through Matt Latino, Greg Anderson and Jeg Coughlin Jr. before getting Hartford, the No. 1 qualifier, in the final. Three of Coughlin’s first three reaction times were .009 or better, turning Monday into as much a driving clinic as a breakthrough.
He opened eliminations with a .009 light and 6.517 at 210.58 against Latino. Another .009 reaction time accompanied a 6.528 at 208.62 to eliminate Anderson in the second round.
Then came a semifinal against his uncle, Jeg Coughlin Jr.
Troy was .006 on the Christmas Tree and ran 6.520 at 210.38 to advance. By the time Hartford rolled into the other lane for the final, Coughlin had spent most of Monday looking like a driver who had grown tired of waiting.
Hartford made him wait a little longer. Neither driver rushed into the staging beams, producing a brief Pro Stock staring contest before Coughlin decided he had seen enough. He staged first, Hartford followed, and Coughlin left first and stayed there.
“Technically, I didn’t really have to go in. I was just ready,” Coughlin said. “I figured, let’s get it on. I got the best guys in the tire industry. We have a wonderful car today. We’re here on a Monday. Let’s just finish this thing.”
For Coughlin, even the staging duel carried a connection to the sport he grew up watching. He remembered seeing his father involved in similar battles and understanding there was another race taking place before the clutch ever came out.
“That’s what pro stock drag racing is,” Coughlin said. “It’s exciting. If you understand it and you know where to go to learn about it, it’s pretty doggone exciting.”
There hadn’t been much fun about portions of the previous 41 races. Coughlin went through stretches when winning the opening round was an accomplishment and other weekends when qualifying for the 16-car field became the first fight. Elite Motorsports kept digging rather than treating the slump as something requiring excuses.
“At Elite Motorsports, it’s a lot like Jordan said, we don’t lose, we learn,” Coughlin said. “We learn something every time we let the clutch out and every dino pole we learn something. And that type of mindset is what Elite Motorsports really possesses.”
Coughlin applied the same approach away from the track. He logged simulator time, lifted weights two or three days each week and added cardio while the Elite crew continued searching for performance in the car and on the dyno. Monday was the provided the payoff.
Coughlin credited Kyle Bates, Kelly Murphy, Alex Laney, Anthony Lum and the Elite operation for giving him a car that allowed him to narrow his responsibilities to the fundamentals — stage shallow, let the clutch out, hit the gears and keep the car between the pipes.
“I’m really, really lucky,” Coughlin said. “I’m probably the luckiest driver here to have such a wonderful group of guys.”
Ending the winless streak was only part of what Coughlin accomplished in Michigan.
He entered the six-race Countdown to the Championship 10th in Pro Stock and left the opening race fifth, just 45 points behind Hartford. With five races remaining, Coughlin went from the bottom of the playoff field to the middle of a championship fight that tightened considerably in one afternoon.
Hartford left Michigan with the points lead, but there isn’t much breathing room behind him. Greg Stanfield sits five points back, while Greg Anderson and Dallas Glenn are tied 11 points behind Hartford, putting Coughlin fifth in a group separated by only 45 points.
The timing of Coughlin’s first victory since 2024 couldn’t have been much better.
“We’re going to enjoy this win with our guys and my family and we’re going to enjoy it with all our hearts for certain,” Coughlin said. “But come tomorrow morning by eight o’clock, you’re in the simulator and you’re getting ready for Rockingham. We’re going to see how the tree’s going to look, where the sun’s going to come in, and we’re going to study and prepare the absolute best that we can and we’re going to go up and try and make eight really nice runs.”
Before leaving Michigan, Coughlin also took notice of what happened outside the ropes.
Sunday brought persistent rain, falling temperatures and eventually a postponement to Monday. Yet Coughlin saw fans continuing to pour into U.S. 131 Motorsports Park even as the rain poured down.
“It was pouring down rain yesterday and they were lined up coming in,” Coughlin said. “That’s the drag racing I remember as a kid. That’s the type of crowds I remember that was normal. This is normal.”
There was plenty for Coughlin to remember about Michigan, too.
He arrived 10th in the Countdown, carrying 41 races without a victory. He left fifth in points with four round wins, his sixth career victory and a Diamond Wally.
Michigan supplied enough rain to postpone the race.
For Coughlin, it also supplied the end of a 41-race drought.
NHRA’S COUNTDOWN PROBLEM DIDN’T START WITH SHAWN REED, BUT HIS CASE EXPOSED IT