Last year, Jeg Coughlin Jr. captured the title of the preseason Pro Stock Showdown at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

and used the momentum of that fast start to charge into the season at
full speed. Nine moths later, the 38-year-old from Delaware, Ohio, was
hoisting his fourth championship trophy.

If he could repeat that feat again this year in his JEGS.com Chevrolet
Cobalt, Coughlin would move even deeper into the drag racing history
books and further cement his status as one of the best drivers ever.

Team Hammonds will have a preliminary start to the 2009 NHRA Full
Throttle Pro Stock season by competing in the  Las Vegas Pro Stock
Showdown this weekend.

Coming off of a disappointing season, Team Hammonds is excited about
using the Showdown to take inventory of what is ahead for this coming
drag racing season.

The Pro Modified Racing Association is pleased to welcome the
involvement of Mickey Thompson Performance Tires and Wheels as a
contingency sponsor for 2009.
 
Mickey Thompson“We’re excited to join the PMRA,” said Carl Robinson,
Motorsports Manager and Wheel Products Manager of Mickey Thompson
Performance Wheels and Tires. “We’ve been watching the series since its
inception, and we’re happy to be associated with the PMRA.”
 
Now entering its fifth year of competition, the PMRA is dedicated in
presenting some of the best in Pro Modified drag racing, and the
support of Mickey Thompson reinforces this influence in the series,
according to PMRA Director of Operations Bruce Mehlenbacher.

Lucas Oil renewed a 13-year partnership with Bruce Litton Racing to carry through the 2009 season. This renewal is especially significant
at a time when many other nitro teams are losing long-standing backing.
The partnership between Lucas Oil and Litton's Top Fuel team began as
an associate sponsorship in 1997. In 2002 Lucas Oil increased their
commitment to Litton, becoming the primary sponsor and retaining that
position now through 2009. Relationships spanning this length of time
in the motorsports world are rare, but not without reward. Litton has
been a consistent top 5 finisher with Lucas Oil backing, also taking
home the 2007 IHRA Top Fuel World Championship.

Lucas Oil has been one of motorsports most commendable supporters, and
has done much for the furtherance of the sport through team, event, and
series sponsorship. Litton notices the value of such a sponsorship and
is very grateful to be included in the Lucas Oil family for yet another
season.

NHRA will suspend oildown penalties for the 2009 season in both the
NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series and the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag
Racing Series. The move is designed to save teams money and is possible
given the success in recent years to minimize oildowns during national
events to enhance the fan experience.

The oildown policy, which was first enacted in 2000 in the Professional
classes and later in the Sportsman categories, was created to improve
the quality of the show for fans attending NHRA Full Throttle Drag
Racing Series events. The policy has been effective in reducing the
amount of downtime caused by oildowns in the Professional and Sportsman
classes at national events.

14-Time Champion Drag Racer Captures Crown of Best Story Teller …

Nobody
tells a story like John Force and for one solid month spanning from
December to January, the readers of CompetitionPlus.com agreed.

The fourteen-time champion from Yorba Linda, Ca., called on his older
brother Louie for inspiration to defeat Pat Musi in the final round.
Force edged Musi by the second closest of margins by claiming victory
with a 52.89% – 47.11% margin.

The emotionally and physically drained Force, just in from testing in
Phoenix, said the victory is one he ranks among his greatest accolades.
Driving an 8,000-horse Funny Car is one thing for Force, but telling a
story like a champion is another.

For the eighth consecutive year, NHRA announced that The Sports Network
(TSN) in Canada will televise the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing
Series’ entire 24-event schedule in 2009, dedicating nearly 75 hours of
programming to NHRA, the fastest and most exciting motorsport in the
world.

Highlighting TSN’s 24-event, 2009 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series
broadcast schedule will be coverage of final eliminations.

NHRA Sportsman Spotlights, showcasing sportsman racers and NHRA member track network, to air on Inside Drag Racing

NHRA announced that ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will continue to air 16 one-hour
shows with coverage from select NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series
national events in 2009.  In addition, the popular NHRA Sportsman
Spotlights, focusing on sportsman racers in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag
Racing Series and NHRA’s member track network, will return on Inside
Drag Racing.

The NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series will be showcased on ESPN2 and
ESPN2HD on a tape-delay basis as part of NHRA’s exclusive relationship
with ESPN, the worldwide leader in sports. ESPN2 is now available in
more than 96 million households.

Drag Racing’s definitive pre-race show, NHRA Race Day, returns for third season

The worldwide leader in sports television will join forces with NHRA
for a ninth consecutive season in 2009 as ESPN2 returns as the
exclusive network of the 24-race NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.
ESPN2 is now available in more than 96 million households.

It’s a partnership that began in 2001 and has grown stronger with each
and every year of the relationship.  In 2008 the fast-growing NHRA Full
Throttle Series delivered nine percent ratings growth on its Sunday
elimination broadcast.