EVENT NEWS EVENT NOTEBOOK PRO MOD NOTEBOOK POINTS AFTER EVENT ROUND-BY-ROUND RESULTS FINAL ROUND RESULTS			EVENT GALLERY

SUNDAY FINAL - COUGHLIN WINS THE ST. LOUIS PRO MOD CROWN

Troy Coughlin raced to the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by ProCare Rx victory Sunday at the AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals at Gateway Motorsports Park.

Coughlin outran Danny Rowe in the final round to score his first career victory in the high-horsepower doorslammer category and move to third in the points standings with only one race remaining in the NHRA Pro Mod season.

Coughlin powered his turbocharged JEGS.com ’68 Camaro to a final round performance of 5.873 seconds at 257.58 mph to take the victory over Rowe, who had problems getting his supercharged Sterling Bridge ’68 Camaro to start for the final. Once Rowe got his machine fired, the car had issues going down the track and finished in 6.732 at 179.42.

“When I let the button go at the starting line in the final, I knew it was over when I didn’t see him, because those blower cars accelerate fast,” Coughlin said. “From then on, I just focused on making a clean run. It was just our time to win.”

Coughlin defeated Rickie Smith, Charlotte winner Leah Pruett and Pete Farber to advance to the final round. Coughlin is a three-time winner in NHRA Pro Stock competition and he claimed a 2005 Pro Mod exhibition victory in Englishtown, N.J., but this is his first Wally in official NHRA Pro Mod competition.

“My guys Steve Petty, Bryan Metzenheim, Mike Rees, Nick Gaylord, all the folks at JEGS.com deserve all the credit in the world,” Coughlin said. “Pro Line, our engine shop, has given us a fantastic race car all year. We beat a five-star team today.”

Coughlin moves to third in the points standings, 42 back of leader Mike Castellana and one point back of second-place Smith.

“Going into the last race out in Vegas with this kind of momentum is important,” Coughlin said. “There are still some spots up for grabs and everything is still pretty tight. Any time you can go to the end of an NHRA season and be in the running for a top three for four spot in your class, that's saying something.”

The NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by ProCare Rx world champion will be crowned at the season-finale, Oct. 25-28, during the Big O Tires NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

 
Final round-by-round results from the Inaugural AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals at Gateway Motorsports Park, the ninth of 10 events in the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by ProCare Rx:

ROUND ONE -- Mike Janis, Ford Mustang, 5.883, 245.00 def. Raymond Commisso, Chevy Camaro, 5.964, 248.11; Troy Coughlin, Camaro, 5.910, 257.97 def. Rickie Smith, Camaro, 5.966, 243.55; Pete Farber, Dodge Daytona, 6.353, 218.19 def. Mike Knowles, Camaro, 11.229, 77.20; Donald Martin, Camaro, 5.875, 247.16 def. Clint Satterfield, Camaro, 6.006, 241.20; Mike Castellana, Camaro, 6.293, 229.31 def. Steve Matusek, Mustang, 6.358, 183.00; Danny Rowe, Camaro, 5.921, 245.49 def. Kenny Lang, Camaro, 6.039, 243.11; Leah Pruett, Mustang, 5.894, 251.95 def. Harold Martin, Chevy Corvette, 6.147, 211.76; Don Walsh, Mustang, 5.856, 252.57 def. Scott Ray, Corvette, broke;

QUARTERFINALS -- Farber, 10.830, 79.15 def. D. Martin, foul; Rowe, 5.932, 236.75 def. Castellana, 5.955, 242.76; Coughlin, 5.922, 255.97 def. Pruett, 5.912, 251.58; Walsh, 5.860, 253.28 def. Janis, 6.069, 196.96;

SEMIFINALS -- Coughlin, 5.930, 252.99 def. Farber, 6.041, 243.68; Rowe, 5.866, 247.20 def. Walsh, foul;

FINAL -- Coughlin, 5.873, 257.58 def. Rowe, 6.732, 179.42.

 
Point standings (top 10) following the ninth of 10 events in the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by ProCare Rx –

1. Mike Castellana, 616; 2.  Rickie Smith, 575; 3.  Troy Coughlin, 574; 4.  Don Walsh, 559; 5. Danny Rowe, 556; 6.  Leah Pruett, 534; 7.  Donald Martin, 468; 8.  Pete Farber, 442; 9.  Mike Knowles, 368; 10.  Steve Matusek, 362.

SATURDAY NOTEBOOK - WALSH CONTINUES PRO MODIFIED DOMINATION INTO SATURDAY

Don Walsh raced to his third consecutive No. 1 qualifying position and then claimed an opening round victory in the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by ProCare Rx portion of the AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals when Scott Ray was unable to make the call in his ’53 Corvette following his top end crash yesterday.

Walsh took the No. 1 qualifying position with a track record performance of 5.816 seconds at 255.43 mph and then sped to the opening round win by powering his late-model Ford Mustang to an effort of 5.856 at 252.57.

Other first round winners included track speed record holder Troy Coughlin, series points leader Mike Castellana and Charlotte winner Leah Pruett.

Second round pairings include Walsh vs. Mike Janis, Danny Rowe vs. Castellana, Donald Martin vs. Pete Farber and Pruett vs. Coughlin. Eliminations for the NHRA Pro Mod Series continue Sunday at approximately 2:30 p.m.

 
First-round Pro Mod results from the Inaugural AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals at Gateway Motorsports Park, the ninth of 10 events in the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by ProCare Rx :

ROUND ONE -- Mike Janis, Ford Mustang, 5.883, 245.00 def. Raymond Commisso, Chevy Camaro, 5.964, 248.11; Troy Coughlin, Camaro, 5.910, 257.97 def. Rickie Smith, Camaro, 5.966, 243.55; Pete Farber, Dodge Daytona, 6.353, 218.19 def. Mike Knowles, Camaro, 11.229, 77.20; Donald Martin, Camaro, 5.875, 247.16 def. Clint Satterfield, Camaro, 6.006, 241.20; Mike Castellana, Camaro, 6.293, 229.31 def. Steve Matusek, Mustang, 6.358, 183.00; Danny Rowe, Camaro, 5.921, 245.49 def. Kenny Lang, Camaro, 6.039, 243.11; Leah Pruett, Mustang, 5.894, 251.95 def. Harold Martin, Chevy Corvette, 6.147, 211.76; Don Walsh, Mustang, 5.856, 252.57 def. Scott Ray, Corvette, broke;

FRIDAY NOTEBOOK -

RAY CRASHES - NHRA Pro Mod racer Scott Ray, 52, of Greeneville, Ohio, was alert and conscious after his '53 Corvette lost control and impacted the guard wall during the second round of qualifying at the AAA NHRA Midwest Nationals in St. Louis, Mo. He was transported to St. Louis University Hospital in St. Louis for further observation.

SIZING UP A CHAMPIONSHIP RUN - When the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by ProCare Rx resumes at Gateway Motorsports Park during the AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals, Sept. 28-30, only eight rounds of racing will remain to crown the 2012 season champion. The title hopes are strong for a handful of drivers, including Don Walsh, who at the past four races has had one of the strongest cars in the competitive category.           

At the Bristol (Tenn.) Dragway event, behind the wheel of his Walsh Motorsports/Precision Turbo Ford Mustang, he set the top speed of the meet and was the runner-up to Rickie Smith. When the series next took to the track, in Norwalk, Ohio, he defeated Ohio native Troy Coughlin in the final and secured his first victory in the series.               

“That win was really an emotional day for me, for us, and it was a huge accomplishment to win an NHRA Wally,” Walsh said. “A lot of people that drag race dream of winning that trophy, and it was a huge day for all of us.”               

Since the victory, Walsh has posted two No. 1 qualifying positions and raced to a semifinal appearance at the most recent event in Charlotte, N.C. The team has worked nonstop this season to boost performance, which has put it in a position to battle for victories.               

“Harry Hruska with Precision Turbo has just worked tirelessly this year, and the whole team has worked tirelessly to figure out the combination and to get it to where it is today,” Walsh continued. “All of us have worked hard to get it that way, and the car is working. In Bristol, we were turning the corner, and we were turning so many bad days into new good days.”               

Even with the midseason success, Walsh did suffer a disappointing loss in Indianapolis, where he qualified No. 1 but lost in the first round to eventual race winner Brad Brand.               

“If anybody tells you something like that doesn’t sting, I don’t think they are telling the truth,” he said. “But how I look at it is we have worked hard to be where we are at, and I think we have made progress throughout the entire year.               

“In drag racing, you are going to lose. You are going to lose from time to time, but you are going to need to be good with that; otherwise, you aren’t going to enjoy the sport a whole lot. Our goal is to go out there and try to win, but it’s not always going to happen.”               

Walsh is third in the points standings, 72 markers behind series leader Mike Castellana. With only two events left, the title is still up for grabs, and Rickie Smith, Danny Rowe, Leah Pruett and Troy Coughlin all have a shot at it.               

“I think it is going to come down to the last round in Vegas before we know,” he said. “What I’ve talked with the team about is we need to win rounds. The only way you win a championship is winning rounds. It doesn’t matter what anybody else does at this point. Whatever they are going to do, they are going to do. We need to go win rounds, and that is what we do.”               

When the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by ProCare Rx visits St. Louis, it will be for the first time since 2010. This will put all the teams on equal footing and will make the racing that much more intense.               

“Everybody’s combinations at this point favor differing conditions, and until we are there and know what we have on race day, we won’t know whose combinations will be favored over another,” Walsh explained. “At a lot of these races, the weather for qualifying and for first round have been entirely different from what we have Sunday morning when we wake up. That has proved to be a huge challenge for us.”

BRINGING THE DOMINATION - R2B2 Racing has won the last two events. In Indy, Brad Brand won while subbing for team owner Roger Brugess. Leah Pruett and her turbocharged ProCare Rx Ford Mustang are hot off a win under the lights at Charlotte last time out, and she would love to extend her team's winning streak to three.

"My crew chief Brad Brand won Indy and I followed it with a win a Charlotte," Pruett said. "It doesn't get much better than that.

"As a team, our goal is to sweep the final four races of the season and we've shown we've got cars that can do just that. If I can't win this weekend, I'd love to see my boss and teammate Roger Burgess get the win. Who knows, we've had all R2B2 Racing finals in the past; we sure have the ability to do it again."

As the season winds down, Pruett is racing for more than just trophies. Less than a round of racing (20 points) separates third place from sixth with St. Louis this weekend and the finale in Las Vegas next month yet to be contested. Pruett, who is in fifth, said another strong showing will go a long way toward locking up a top-three finish.

"We've got to race hard all the way to the end of the season," Pruett said. "There's no room for error or nagging parts failures during race day. We're in a tricky spot right now. We're a dozen points out of third and only one point from dropping out of the top five.

"Thankfully, the car is as strong as it's ever been this season and after the team has won two races in a row, everyone in the R2B2 pits is full of confidence."

It's been since 2010 when the Pro Mods last raced at Gateway, so everyone in the pits will be getting their race legs under them in the first couple of passes.

"I think that works to my advantage a little bit," Pruett said. "At most of the tracks we go to, I'm only getting a first or second look at a track most of the guys in the series have made a ton of laps at."

GETTING BACK IN THE GROOVE -  With only two races left on the NHRA Pro Mod Series presented by ProCare Rx, including this weekend's tilt at Gateway International Raceway, past world champion drag racer Troy Coughlin knows he must immediately return to top form if he hopes to end the year with another title.

After a string of great finishes, including a pair of runner-up results in Englishtown, N.J., and Norwalk, Ohio, Coughlin uncharacteristically stumbled and fell in the first round of the last Pro Mod race in Charlotte. Fortunately, he's still within striking distance of the top drivers, just 85 points off the lead and a scant 13 away from a top-three ranking.

"It's plain to see what we need to do," Coughlin said. "We have no more room for error. That's okay; we like the pressure. It actually makes it a little easier when you know there's nothing to lose and everything to gain.

"Everyone ahead of us in the points right now have proven they have what it takes to win it all. Whoever ultimately comes out on top will have definitely earned it. This might be the deepest field of title contenders we've ever seen in this class."

Coughlin, the 2009 Pro Street world champion in the National Muscle Car Association, will race with the support of brother Jeg Coughlin Jr., who will be contesting the Pro Stock trophy this weekend at Gateway. He'll also be racing with one of the fastest cars in the class as he's set top speed at three of eight races this year.

"Steve (Petty, crew chief) and the guys have given me a great racecar every time out and when I do my job behind the wheel, we usually have plenty of success," Coughlin said. "We're all pros on this team and the JEGS.com Camaro is one of the best turbo cars on the planet. All we need to do is go out there, have some fun, and win this race."