Four months off has Coughlin primed for Indy
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INDIANAPOLIS (Aug. 27) -- Pro Modified racer Troy Coughlin hasn't driven a racecar in almost four months since crashing his hot rod during the Atlanta race in late April, but the veteran racer is back up to speed and ready to race at this weekend's 54th annual Mac Tools U.S. Nationals.
Coughlin will debut a brand-new Tommy Mauney-built '68 Camaro at drag racing's biggest event as part of the JEGS ProMod Challenge. After a recent testing session at Gateway International Raceway in St. Louis, Coughlin is confident his JEGS.com-sponsored racecar will be up to the task of competing in the tough category.
"We posted a bunch of 6.0-second runs in St. Louis, the best of which was a 6.03 at 237 mph, so I think we'll be right there with all the hitters," Coughlin said. "We're certainly not taking anything for granted and I've been watching closely since we've been sidelined and I've seen how tough it is in this class. We'll have our hands full, but we're ready."
As always, Coughlin's supercharged entry will be powered by a Brad Anderson powerplant. Anderson joined the team in St. Louis to make sure they were getting the most out of his monstrous engines.
"It was great having Brad there because it freed us up to work on other things," Coughlin said. "There are always adjustments you need to make in the cockpit after you've actually driven a new car under power and there seem to be little ticky-tack things that need fine-tuning, so having the ability to focus on those things was super helpful.
'We're also bringing Tommy Mauney to Indy so he can help us keep this car going nice and straight. With Brad and Tommy behind us, we've got two seasoned pros in our corner and that's exciting."
The first of five rounds of professional qualifying for the Pro Mod set is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. Friday at O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis. If history is any indicator, the first session could offer the best conditions, placing a premium on a fast start for all the Pro Mod teams.
"We'll need to be ready to take full advantage of that session," Coughlin said. "I'm glad we got to test, not just for squaring the car away but for allowing me the chance to get back in the seat and let the clutch out a few times. This has been the longest break of my career and you want you driving to be as sharp as possible to help the crew out. Hopefully, we'll have some fun this weekend and make a little noise. Lord knows we're ready to get back to racing."
<img src="http://www.nitromater.com/gallery/files/1/bio_troy.jpg" alt="bio_troy" align="left"borders="0"/>
INDIANAPOLIS (Aug. 27) -- Pro Modified racer Troy Coughlin hasn't driven a racecar in almost four months since crashing his hot rod during the Atlanta race in late April, but the veteran racer is back up to speed and ready to race at this weekend's 54th annual Mac Tools U.S. Nationals.
Coughlin will debut a brand-new Tommy Mauney-built '68 Camaro at drag racing's biggest event as part of the JEGS ProMod Challenge. After a recent testing session at Gateway International Raceway in St. Louis, Coughlin is confident his JEGS.com-sponsored racecar will be up to the task of competing in the tough category.
"We posted a bunch of 6.0-second runs in St. Louis, the best of which was a 6.03 at 237 mph, so I think we'll be right there with all the hitters," Coughlin said. "We're certainly not taking anything for granted and I've been watching closely since we've been sidelined and I've seen how tough it is in this class. We'll have our hands full, but we're ready."
As always, Coughlin's supercharged entry will be powered by a Brad Anderson powerplant. Anderson joined the team in St. Louis to make sure they were getting the most out of his monstrous engines.
"It was great having Brad there because it freed us up to work on other things," Coughlin said. "There are always adjustments you need to make in the cockpit after you've actually driven a new car under power and there seem to be little ticky-tack things that need fine-tuning, so having the ability to focus on those things was super helpful.
'We're also bringing Tommy Mauney to Indy so he can help us keep this car going nice and straight. With Brad and Tommy behind us, we've got two seasoned pros in our corner and that's exciting."
The first of five rounds of professional qualifying for the Pro Mod set is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. Friday at O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis. If history is any indicator, the first session could offer the best conditions, placing a premium on a fast start for all the Pro Mod teams.
"We'll need to be ready to take full advantage of that session," Coughlin said. "I'm glad we got to test, not just for squaring the car away but for allowing me the chance to get back in the seat and let the clutch out a few times. This has been the longest break of my career and you want you driving to be as sharp as possible to help the crew out. Hopefully, we'll have some fun this weekend and make a little noise. Lord knows we're ready to get back to racing."
