Las Vegas (November 2, 2014) – Jeg Coughlin Jr. led the Team Mopar contingent in eliminations on Sunday at the NHRA Nationals in Las Vegas, racing his JEGS.com/Mopar Dodge Dart to the runner-up spot and an eighth career final-round appearance at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. In the NHRA Funny Car class, Vegas semifinalist and Mopar Express Lane Dodge Charger R/T driver Matt Hagan will head to the final event of the six-race NHRA Countdown to the Championship playoffs holding a 21-point lead over the second-place John Force as he fights to bring home his second overall Funny Car crown for the Mopar brand.

No. 3 qualifier and defending NHRA Pro Stock champ Coughlin earned lane choice for an all-Mopar showdown in the quarterfinals against teammate Allen Johnson after using a quicker 6.596/208.91 mark to knock off Aaron Stanfield (6.670/206.76) in the opening round. Johnson, No. 6 starter in his Magneti Marelli Quality Auto Parts Offered by Mopar Dodge Dart, posted a 6.608/208.65 to get past Chris McGaha (6.635/208.01) in round one. In the HEMI vs. HEMI battle, Coughlin motored to the win with a 6.626/208.14 run after Johnson got out of the groove early and slowed.

In the semifinals against Shane Gray, Coughlin was quicker off the starting line with a .012 reaction time and never looked back with a quicker and faster 6.605/208.46 effort to Gray’s 6.647/208.26. In his 99th career final round and sixth this season, Coughlin fell short in his bid for a sixth career Vegas win, with his more-than-respectable 6.596/209.14 effort not enough to overcome event winner Erica Enders-Stevens’ 6.587/209.36.

“I feel fantastic about our day because we’ve had a really good car since making some changes during qualifying in St. Louis,” said Coughlin, who moved into a tie for fifth in the standings with teammate Johnson after his strong Vegas outing. “The Dodge Dart has been really nice to drive, fast and efficient, but with their strong elapsed time and Erica (Enders-Stevens’) reaction time, we just got beat in the final.

“It was a monumental win for us just to work our way to having a day like today. We have one race left to cross the finish line first in the final, which would be my 100th, and I’ve been knocking on the door of my 75th race career win, so I would love nothing more to ring the year out in that fashion.”

“Lane choice got us,” said Johnson of his second-round duel with Coughlin. “It’s disappointing, because it pretty much puts us out of the running for the world championship, but we’ll take our Dodge Dart to Pomona and see how far up the points we can move. Hopefully, third place will still be in our sights and we’ll work our butts off trying to get there.”

Mopar-powered Dodge Pro Stocker V. Gaines was near-perfect on the tree with a .003-reaction time in the first round, but was beat to the stripe by an agonizing seven thousands of a second by Dave Connolly, losing with a 6.647/207.75 to Connolly’s 6.601/209.07.

Las Vegas (November 1, 2014) – JEGS.com/Mopar Dodge Dart racer Jeg Coughlin Jr. added to the four bonus points and best run of 6.653/207.69 he collected on Friday, moving up to the No. 1 spot in the first session on Saturday with a 6.597/209.20 and banking three bonus points. In his final qualifying attempt, the defending NHRA Pro Stock champ was solid with a 6.613/209.14 (even after his Dodge made a move to the left) but was shuffled to the No. 3 spot and a date with Aaron Stanfield in round one of eliminations.

“We can’t complain at all really because my Dodge Dart is as good as it has been all year,” said Coughlin, who will seek his sixth career win at Vegas on Sunday. “We were second the first two sessions, low the third session and knew that we’d need to improve that last session to stay up top, but I don’t know that we would have had enough for that .57 that Erica (Enders-Stevens) ran. I feel really good behind the wheel and like where we sit to make a day of it on race day.”

Allen Johnson steadily improved over his first three qualifying runs in his Magneti Marelli Quality Auto Parts Offered by Mopar Dodge Dart, recording 6.665- and 6.659-second passes on Friday and a 6.605/209.10 in his first Saturday run. After a 6.614/208.65 in his fourth attempt, Johnson will start sixth on Sunday against Chris McGaha. Both Johnson and his teammate Coughlin have qualified in the top half of the field at 21 of the 23 events held thus far.

“We made four very decent runs even when on that last run the track got cold and it got a bit precarious all the way down the track,” said Johnson, owner of three previous Vegas victories. “We just have to do the same thing on race day and we’ll be right there. You got to do everything right to have a shot, but we need a little Vegas luck, too, so we’ll keep our fingers crossed.”

Reading, Pennsylvania (Oct. 5, 2014) – In factory hot rod action, Allen Johnson had a big day as he took his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart from its fourth seeded position to the final round appearance and then from eighth to fifth place in the points battle for the Pro Stock world championship. He did it with a first round win over Larry Morgan and then an important holeshot victory over Vincent Nobile to advance to the semifinals. Johnson’s .010-second reaction time gave him the starting line advantage over Nobile’s .039-second launch and then he used the Johnson & Johnson HEMI to power his way to the finish line with a 6.498/213.06 elapsed time run ahead of his opponent’s career best 6.479/213.27 pass.

That victory set up a semifinal battle against Erica Enders-Stevens and Johnson rose to the occasion by launching with his first career perfect .000-second light (in eliminations) and then posted a 6.499/212.69 elapsed time run to beat his rival who encountered tire shake on her pass. That propelled the Mopar to a final round elimination against Roger Brogden where Johnson finished runner-up after tire shake off the start ruined his chances for a Countdown title win.

“We had a really good day,” said Johnson, whose Mopar team rebounded from a difficult start to qualifying. “After Friday we all had our heads down and scratching our heads but the team kept digging and today we made three very nice conservative runs. We got a little too conservative in the final and that bit us but that’s good momentum going into the last two events and our goal is still to battle in the top-three and for a championship. Today’s result set us back on that path.”

For last year’s Reading Nationals title winner and the 2013 NHRA Pro Stock World Champion, Jeg Coughlin Jr., a first round loss on Sunday meant conceding any hopes of defending either.

"It's not a reality at this point to think we can defend the title, at least with this JEGS.com Dodge Dart," said Coughlin, who fell to eighth place in the Pro Stock standings with just two events left on the schedule. "Allen (Johnson) still has a chance, so we'll pull for him to keep the championship trophy with Mopar for a third year in a row.”

Coughlin’s first round opponent was a familiar one as he and Greg Anderson met for an 83rd time in eliminations. As good as a .010-second reaction time by the JEGS.com driver might have been, this time his rival’s perfect .000 start and a 6.501/213.60 cleanly defeated Coughlin's 6.545/212.23 in a great drag race to the finish.

Reading, Pennsylvania (Oct. 4, 2014) – While temperatures cooled into the 60 degree range at Maple Grove Raceway near Reading, Pennsylvania, for the final qualifying sessions of the 30th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals, the competition heated up as Mopar drivers jostled for position on the eliminations ladders for Sunday’s fourth race of the six-event playoff series known as the “Countdown to the Championship”.

After two difficult Pro Stock sessions on Friday left him without a clean run or provisional qualifying position, Allen Johnson and his Mopar crew put a fresh set of tires on the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart and came back strong for their final two runs. Johnson posted a 6.526 e.t at 211.83 mph run in the third session to move up to the provisional fourth spot, and then turned it up a notch again on the final lap to post the fourth quickest run of the session once again with a 6.505/212.79 pass.

“We made a good recovery today,” said Johnson whose fourth seeded position will give him lane choice over Larry Morgan as his first round opponent on Sunday. “Just a simple thing got us on the two runs yesterday. We went through everything with a fine tooth comb and determined the problem to be old tires. Once we got a new set on there today we were all good. Everyone really pulled together and worked hard and that got us a top-five starting position. I’m really proud of the team. With the exception of a couple of cars, we looked pretty good. We’ve still got a little on the table. We’re a couple of runs behind so we’ll take the first round tomorrow to try to build on it.”

Defending Pro Stock title winner at Reading, Jeg Coughlin Jr. improved on his Friday qualifying efforts by driving his pink-schemed Dodge Dart for Breast Cancer Awareness month to the third quickest run of the third session with a 6.525/211.93 pass. While he wasn’t able to take advantage of the cooler temperatures to make a quicker run in the final session, Coughlin will start from the seventh spot on the ladder to face Greg Anderson as his first round pairing and hopes to make his way through eliminations to make gains in the points in order to also defend his NHRA World Championship with just three races to go in the Countdown.

"We've made three really nice runs in qualifying, just missing it a touch in the final session,” said Coughlin. “Even so, we are running this special edition pink car to help raise awareness for breast cancer and it's gone over so well I feel like we've won already before we've even let the clutch out on race day. We're very honored to run this paint scheme and we're thankful that our partners like Mopar, Traxxas and Speedco have joined us in recognizing such a great cause."

Saturday’s cooling temperatures led to quicker Pro Stock runs as demonstrated by the track record 6.465/213.16 run set by Erica Enders-Stevens in the final session to earn the No.1 qualifier position. Coughlin, however, expects the action to intensify on race day morning with the possibility of a national record, and the 20 very important bonus points that go with it, to be up for grabs.

"Sunday should be great," added Coughlin who has more wins at this track than any other Pro Stock driver with four national titles. "We have a cold front moving in as we speak and they tell me we'll get down in the 40s tonight and only warm up to about 60 degrees tomorrow, which will be just perfect for these Pro Stock cars. It could be very, very fast. We already saw a near world record out there in Q4 so it's definitely within reach.”

Reading, Pennsylvania (Oct. 3, 2014) – It was a quick start to the 30th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals for a number of Mopar entries in qualifying on Friday at Maple Grove Raceway near Reading, Pennsylvania, the fourth stop in the six-event playoff series known as the “Countdown to the Championship”.

Defending Pro Stock World Champion, Jeg Coughlin Jr. got to work on trying to make his way back from a current seventh place spot in the Countdown and 133 points behind the leader, Jason Line, with just three eliminations left to determine the 2014 winner. Coughlin, who has won a class-leading four national titles at Reading, drove his pink-schemed Dodge Dart for Breast Cancer Awareness month to the third (6.543 /211.30) and fourth (6.542 /211.20) quickest times in Friday’s qualifying session and knows the importance of a strong showing this weekend

"We've got a bit of a climb ahead of us but we're still pushing hard to achieve our ultimate goal of defending our title," said Coughlin whose best showing in the Countdown so far has been a semifinal appearance last weekend at the Midwest Nationals. "We ran well in St. Louis after making some pretty big changes to the car, and we're going to continue to push the envelope this weekend in Reading to try and close the gap. The exciting thing about being in the position we're in is that we can kind of go for it and try some things that normally we probably wouldn't try. These aren't crazy, panicky moves; they're more like moves we've all thought about and discussed in the past that we just didn't try because the points were so close. They still are close, but being six rounds back, we have the luxury of being able to take bigger chances."

Johnson & Johnson HEMI-powered teammate, Allen Johnson, had a much more difficult day in the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart and had to abandon both of his qualifying runs after battling a loose car putting him in the 18th on the timing sheets. He will make two more attempts on Saturday to improve his seeding for eliminations at Maple Grove Raceway.

Madison, Illinois (Sept. 28, 2014) – In Pro Stock action, after No.2 qualifier Jeg Coughlin Jr. drove his JEGS.com Dodge Dart to a first round win over Deric Kramer, and Allen Johnson’s “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart took the opening round win over Richie Stevens, the HEMI-powered teammates would unfortunately meet in the quarterfinals for all-Mopar showdown. The two had almost identical .02 second reaction times but Coughlin took the victory after Johnson made a sudden move toward the centerline before pushing in the clutch.

“We had a good car but made some bad adjustments for that run,” said Johnson who falls to the eighth spot in the Pro Stock points standings. “It wasn’t what we needed to do to win this championship. Now we’re really behind the eight ball we’ll have to go to the next one and see if we can win three in a row because that is what it is going to take.”

That set up the JEGS.com Mopar with a semifinal battle against Jason Line, and while Coughlin had the quicker elapsed time run with a 6.573/212.13 to his opponent’s 6.595/211.53, his .050-second reaction time was beaten by Line’s .024-second reaction time. Coughlin came up just 0.0042 seconds short at the finish line to advancing to the final round but his semifinal appearance helped him move up one spot in the countdown standings to seventh place with three events left in the playoffs to defend his 2013 NHRA Pro Stock world championship crown.

With a .041-second reaction time, V. Gaines (6.562/211.16) gave his Dodge Avenger a holeshot win in the first round over Shane Gray (6.546/211.30), beating him to the stripe to send the Mopar to a quarterfinal pairing against Dave Connolly. Gaines once again had a starting line advantage a .039 reaction time to his opponent’s .060, but after an incredible close race down the quarter mile track, the battle was won by Connolly by just .0003 seconds or approximately one inch. Connolly went on to win the Midwest Nationals title with a final round elimination against Pro Stock points leader Jason Line.

Madison, Illinois (Sept. 27, 2014) – Pro Stock driver Jeg Coughlin Jr. was the top Mopar in final qualifying as he drove his JEGS.com Dodge Dart to No.2 qualifier position at the third annual AAA Insurance National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Midwest Nationals at Gateway Motorsports Park near St. Louis, Missouri, in preparation for the third of six playoff nationals events in the NHRA “Countdown to the Championship”.

The Mopar Dodge Darts were strong in the Saturday qualifying with both Coughlin and his Johnson & Johnson HEMI-powered teammate Allen Johnson gaining valuable points in the Countdown with top-three runs in the final two sessions. Coughlin put his JEGS.com Mopar in the second spot on the time sheets in the third qualifying session of the weekend with a 6.532-second elapsed time run at 211.66 mile per hour, while Johnson was right behind him in his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” machine with the third quickest run of Q3 by posting a 6.536/211.93.

Coughlin improved again in the final session by running the second quickest time once again with a 6.522/212.53 to put him in the No.2 spot on the Pro Stock eliminations ladder. He’ll be paired up against Deric Kramer and his HEMI-powered Dodge Avenger in the first round of Sunday’s Midwest Nationals.

Even after improving his elapsed time with the fifth quickest run of the final session, Johnson was seeded seventh by running a 6.531/212.26 to meet up with Richie Stevens as his first round opponent.

After difficulties on his first three passes, V. Gaines got in a good run with his Dodge Avenger to move up into the 12 spot in qualifying with a 6.565/211.00 lap. He’ll have Shane Gray in the opposing lane for his first round of eliminations. The top spot in Pro Stock qualifying was taken by Erica Enders-Stevens who was quickest in all four sessions and earned the No.1 seed with a 5.511/213.03.

Madison, Illinois (Sept. 26, 2014) – The third stop for the six-event playoff series known as the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) “Countdown to the Championship” has the Mopar’s drivers and teams racing this weekend in the shadow of the Gateway Arch at the third annual AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals near St. Louis, Missouri.

Allen Johnson, No.1 Pro Stock qualifier at Gateway Motorsports Park in 2013, was the quickest Mopar after two qualifying sessions aboard his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart to put him in the provisional fifth spot. Johnson posted a 6.549 second lap at 211.43 miles per hour on his first pass and improved to a 6.537/212.13 on his second. With his first qualifying lap of the event in the JEGS.com Dodge Dart, Jeg Coughlin Jr. was within one-thousandths of a second from his Mopar teammate in sixth spot with a 6.550/211.73 but wasn’t able to improve on it with his second lap and dropped to the eighth spot.

Mopar driver V. Gaines, racing his Dodge Avenger after a racing incident to start the Countdown in Charlotte, North Carolina, destroyed his Dodge Dart, had trouble on the launch on both his Friday qualifying runs and sits in the 16th spot with a 7.097/203.16. The fourth HEMI-powered driver in the field, Deric Kramer posted a 6.602/208.88 and sits 15th behind the wheel of his Dodge Avenger. The provisional Pro Stock top spot is being held by Erica Enders-Stevens who set the low elapsed time pass at 5.513 /212.90 with her first run.

Ennis, Texas (Sept. 21, 2014) – In Pro Stock competition, the No.2 qualifier for eliminations Allen Johnson saw his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart endure some initial tire chatter in his first round win over fellow HEMI-powered Matt Hartford to advance to a quarterfinal pairing against Dave Connolly. After some solid qualifying runs had Johnson and the Mopar team feeling confident about making strides in the Countdown, their efforts came to a premature end with a .041-second reaction time and a 6.607-second e.t. with the top speed of the round at 210.47 mph in a second round loss to Connolly’s .005-second light and 6.603/209.33 run. Connolly went on to win the FallNationals title by defeating Shane Gray in the final.

“We really have a package now, with both Mopar team cars actually, to work on,” Johnson said. “I didn’t feel that way coming into this weekend but the last three runs we were the fastest cars. I gave up a little on that last one but a .005 light (reaction time by his opponent) was going to be hard to beat. I really feel confident going forward into the next three or four races. We should be the two fastest cars and be able to go win some races.”

Johnson’s quarterfinal appearance followed a first round loss in the first playoff race. Those results unfortunately dropped him to seventh place in the standings just ahead of teammate Jeg Coughlin Jr. and fellow Dodge driver V. Gaines. However, the good news for the HEMI-powered contingent is that their competitors atop the Countdown points heading into the weekend, Erica Enders Stevens and Jason Line, also lost their quarterfinal match-ups allowing the Pro Stock battle to tighten up.

“As close as the competition is in Pro Stock and these playoffs, even with the setbacks we’ve had in the first two Countdown eliminations, it’s not out of reach by any means,” Johnson said. “We just have to go to St. Louis and win the race.”

Coughlin echoed his teammates sentiments after seeing his day shortened due to a transmission break in the first round against Greg Anderson.

“Not quite the weekend we had drawn up," said the JEGS.com Mopar driver. "Here in Dallas, with the finishing up of the Charlotte race and then rolling into this event, we had high hopes. The car just wasn't where we needed it to be. Probably our best run was in Q4, which gave us a ton of confidence going into today. It just didn't work out this time.

"We've got four races left, so we'll certainly make a strong effort," said Coughlin who sits eighth in points. "The whole team is extremely capable. It just wasn't in the cards, as you say, so we'll move on to St. Louis next weekend."

V. Gaines also saw his day come to a premature end with a first round loss to Jonathon Gray.

Ennis, Texas (Sept. 19, 2014) – This weekend’s qualifying sessions for the 29th annual AAA Texas National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) FallNationals at Texas Motorplex near Dallas, Texas, will see four Mopar drivers doubling their on-track efforts as the Mello Yellow Drag Racing Series also looks to complete some unfinished business from last weekend’s shortened Carolina Nationals. Mopar’s Pro Stock drivers Jeg Coughlin Jr. and V. Gaines, along with Funny Car pilots Matt Hagan and Ron Capps have the chance to earn two national titles in one weekend.

The first of the six-event playoff called the NHRA “Countdown to the Championship” saw its elimination rounds rescheduled to this weekend where it will be run concurrently to qualifying for the FallNationals. Friday’s second qualifying session served to complete Pro Stock’s Carolina Nationals first round of eliminations, while the rest of eliminations will be contested on Saturday.

All three Mopar Pro Stock entries made their opening round runs last weekend, including defending Carolina Nationals title winner Coughlin who defeated Greg Anderson to advance to the quarterfinals. Based on Friday afternoon’s completion of the first round, Coughlin now knows his next eliminations opponent will be Vincent Nobile with the showdown to occur during Saturday’s first qualifying session.

Gaines was awarded the round win over Allen Johnson, who was disqualified during last week’s first round when the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” machine drove over the centerline just prior to Gaines’ own spectacular accident in which his new Dodge Dart was destroyed. Gaines was allowed the use of a replacement car for the continuation of eliminations and returned to competition at Texas Motorplex with the Dodge Avenger that made two final round appearances earlier this season. Gaines will see Jonathon Gray as his opponent in the next elimination round of the Carolina Nationals.

After two qualifying sessions at Texas Motorplex, Coughlin’s JEGS.com Mopar Dodge Dart was the quickest of the HEMI-powered entries posting the sixth quickest elapsed time run with a 6.596 second pass at 209.59 miles per hour. Allen Johnson drove his Magneti Marelli Mopar to an eighth best pass of 6.607/209.75 while V. Gaines was provisionally 13th overall with his 6.635/208.97 effort. The provisional Pro Stock pole position was earned by Shane Gray with a 6.577/209.88 run on Friday evening.

Concord, North Carolina (Sept. 14, 2014) – Mopar motorsports fans will have to wait a week to see the completion of the seventh annual Pep Boys National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Carolina Nationals, the first national event of the six-race playoff series called the “Countdown to the Championship”, after eliminations rounds were halted by rain shortly after a first round on-track incident involving Mopar driver V.Gaines at zMAX Dragway near Charlotte, North Carolina. The postponed elimination rounds will be completed at the following scheduled event in Ennis, Texas, next weekend at the NHRA FallNationals.

The on-track incident took place during the Pro Stock category first round match-up between fifth place qualifier Allen Johnson aboard his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart, in the right lane and V. Gaines’ HEMI-Powered Dodge Dart, which was qualified 12th on the eliminations ladder, in the left lane. Shortly after the cars launched, Johnson’s machine sashayed its way over the centerline for disqualification, but all eyes were on V. Gaines moments later as his car made an unexpected move to the left and gave the affable driver a wild ride that led to a few tense moments. Gaines emerged uninjured from his heavily damaged vehicle.

“Nobody made it down that left lane so I was fully prepared to let out of it the minute it did anything stupid,” said Gaines who came into the Countdown eighth in points. “I was going right down the middle of the groove and everything was good. I knew I was ahead of Allen (Johnson) and then, boy, it just went. It just took a left turn on me and there was no correcting. It was just gone.”

Despite the unfortunate finish to his lap, Gaines earned the round win against Johnson and the NHRA will allow the use of a replacement car for the continuation of eliminations in Texas next weekend.

“I’m sad to lose the new car but we’ll come back from this,” Gaines said. “We’re here to fight in the Countdown. It was a hard way to get twenty points but we’ll get our (Dodge) Avenger out and do what we can.”

Also advancing to the second round of eliminations is the JEGS.com Mopar Dodge Dart driven by Jeg Coughlin Jr. who won his first round match-up against Greg Anderson to keep alive hopes of defending his Carolina Nationals Pro Stock title from last year. Match-ups will be determined after the final four pairs of cars in Pro Stock have a chance to finish their first round of eliminations.

Brownsburg, Indiana (Sept 1, 2014) – In the NHRA Pro Stock ranks Allen Johnson, racing out of the No. 6 position in his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart, reeled off a 6.640/208.52 to begin eliminations and dispatch Chris McGaha. Johnson’s bid for his first U.S. Nationals victory ended in the quarterfinals, where his car shook and bounced shortly after launch, resulting in a losing 7.064/169.25 run to winner Shane Gray’s 6.634/208.36. Gray went on to win his first U.S. Nationals Pro Stock title and first victory of the season.

“We have never quite learned how to overcome being first out after a fresh drag (of track prep), and the virus we’ve been battling in the car got us again,” Johnson said. “No way to simulate that behind the fuel cars, because it’s just not consistent. It’s something we’ve got to get better at. Normally we’re the faster car so we’re not first out and that’s important to us for that very reason.”

As disappointed as Johnson was, the Mopar driver was happy with what the two-car Mopar team accomplished thus far this year, and is looking forward to the start of the Countdown in two weeks at zMAX Dragway near Charlotte, North Carolina.

“We’ve had a good regular season with as many wins as anybody else, and our teammate has some wins too,” said Johnson, who goes into the playoffs with four wins and sitting third in the standings. “We’re going to approach the Countdown with a vengeance. We’ll go there and test this week and see if we can’t get a tune up that’s a little better than we had here. It’s a whole new season and we’re basically starting from scratch, but it’s very important to get a good start. Hopefully we can go to Charlotte and win our first race there.”

Like most of Team Mopar, JEGS.com/Mopar Dodge Dart driver Jeg Coughlin Jr. will be happy to put the U.S. Nationals in his rearview mirror. The defending NHRA Pro Stock Series World Champ qualified No. 9 and squared off against rookie Aaron Stanfield in the opening round. Coughlin was a tad early on the tree (-.003), earning a red light foul and giving Stanfield the win.

“It’s a little more disappointing when it’s the U.S. Nationals, the 60th anniversary of this event and 50th for the (426) HEMI,” Coughlin said. “It’s such a grind out here this year too. We were finishing two rounds from Brainerd so there was a lot of preparation that went into this race and the team fought hard all weekend, so we can’t be that disappointed.

“The Countdown is where we’ll turn our focus with the JEGS.com Mopar,” added Coughlin. “I’m really happy with all of our efforts and coming into the first race of the Countdown at Charlotte as a returning champion and World Champion makes it exciting, so that’s the kind of start we’re going to need. The discipline and focus of this Mopar team makes us capable of pulling that off.”

The starting tree also played a feature role for two other Mopar-powered Pro Stockers in the opening round. V. Gaines was perfect on the starting tree (.000) in his Dodge Dart, but his quick reflexes weren’t enough to best opponent Dave Connolly. Gaines’ 6.653/208.26 was edged at the finish by Connolly’s 6.614/208.39: the margin of victory was a miniscule eight inches over the Mopar Pro Stock veteran. Dodge Avenger driver Matt Hartford suffered a red light loss in his battle against Vincent Nobile.

Brownsburg, Indiana (Aug 31, 2014) – In Pro Stock action, some unfinished business was wrapped up as Jeg Coughlin Jr. drove his HEMI-powered Dodge Dart to a runner-up finish against Pro Stock points leader Jason Line in what doubled as the final elimination of the rescheduled Brainerd national event and the fourth qualifying session for the NHRA U.S. Nationals. It is the JEGS.com Mopar driver’s third runner-up result of the season and the 40th of his career. Coughlin’s e.t. of 6.635 seconds at 207.72 miles per hour was good enough to put him seventh in the qualifying session but not enough to beat Line’s session-best 6.596/207.40 pass. Line remained No.1 qualifier with the low e.t. run of the event with his 6.589 /209.98 pass.

“I’m not upset with it a bit because it’s a tough field out here and there are a lot of teams that have worked so hard this year,” Coughlin said. “We’ve had a great year between now and the first 17 races of the season, with a handful of wins and another handful of runner-ups. I think we’re positioning ourselves well, not only for game day here at the 60th annual U.S. Nationals, but also for the Countdown.”

Coughlin posted his best effort in the final qualifying session with a 6.623/208.07 to put him ninth overall and pair him with Aaron Stanfield for the first round of eliminations on Monday at the U.S. Nationals.

“This weekend has been, as Allen (Johnson) would say as well, a non-stop thrash,” said Coughlin of the hard work put in by the Mopar team to improve the competitiveness of the cars through each session. “I can’t thank both teams enough for the effort they have put in to try and get our cars up in the top four like we had set out as our goal. We didn’t quite get there with our qualifying efforts, but the show is not over yet. Fortunately here at Indy, both lanes are very, very competitive. I feel confident going into race day tomorrow that we’ve got a Dodge Dart that can shoot right through the field.”

After a challenging start to the weekend, HEMI-powered teammate Allen Johnson made his best run of the meet in the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart on his final attempt by posting the second-best pass of the session at 6.610/208.81 to put him sixth on the Pro Stock eliminations ladder. He’ll have lane choice over Chris McGaha for the opening round.

“We’ve struggled since we got here, but these guys just beat on it and beat on it, and with that last run of the weekend we’re right there and very competitive,” said Johnson, who was much more upbeat about the setup of his Dodge Dart for eliminations. “I feel sure that we can take what we did just then and maybe improve even a little bit more tomorrow. Even if we’re not qualified as well as we’d want, we’ll go into Monday with one of the best cars for race day, so we’re looking forward to going out there and seeing if we can’t bring home that first trophy from Indy.”

“It’s been a long, hard route, but damn we sure needed all five runs to get where we’re at now from where we started the weekend,” added Johnson, who is hoping to make his way to his first career final elimination at Indianapolis. “It’s an exciting, long weekend, but everyone has worked their butts off and really wants this.”

V. Gaines, who finished runner-up at this event last year, will start from the 13th spot on the ladder with his best effort of 6.629/208.71 in his HEMI-powered Dodge Dart. Gaines will see Dave Connolly as his first round opponent. Part-time Pro Stock entrant Matt Hartford qualified his Dodge Avenger 15th with a 6.661/207.85 run and will line up against Vincent Nobile for the first round.

Brownsburg, Indiana (Aug 30, 2014) – The final Pro Stock qualifying session of the day also served as semifinals for the rescheduled Brainerd event to determine who would advance to a final elimination to be held Sunday evening.

Jeg Coughlin Jr. drove his JEGS.com Mopar Dodge Dart to the round win over Vincent Nobile with a .012 reaction time and 6.638/ 207.88 run to his competition’s .016 reaction and 6.715/ 207.85 effort. Coughlin now advances to a final elimination battle against provisional No.1 qualifier for the U.S. Nationals, Jason Line (6.589/209.98), during Sunday’s second qualifying session.

“I came into the event knowing I was going to have two runs before the (Brainerd) semifinals, and I kind of approached each run as if it was eliminations,” said Coughlin, who would love to add a third title win to his season total heading into the playoffs. “I drove aggressive in both timed runs. I was .009 and triple zero (in reaction time) on my two runs. We worked on the reaction time to slow it down a bit. That part feels great. I’m real confident behind the wheel.”

But while Coughlin has his eye on the Brainerd Wally trophy, and his third qualifying run was an improvement from the previous two, he currently sits on the outside looking in with the 13th quickest time and is not yet qualified for the elimination rounds of the U.S. Nationals.

“We came here and kind of struggled in Q1 in the tenth spot,” Coughlin said. “We improved a shade moving up to No. 9, and then I’m sure we just got bumped back even more with that .63. We improved again, but they were handing out pretty good runs out there. That’s just the way the weekend has gone. We’ve got a great team, we’ve got an extremely strong team, and they’ve got the biggest cheerleader in me trying to help motivate them and give them ideas to get things sorted out.”

“We know we can do it, Coughlin added. “We’ve got 100 percent of everything we need to go out and win this race tomorrow and qualify well for the U.S. Nationals. That’s what we are set on.”

Coughlin’s HEMI-powered teammate Allen Johnson fared better in Saturday’s two qualifying sessions as well, posting his best run at 6.614/208.65 in the Magneti Marelli/ Mopar Dodge Dart to put him provisionally seventh.

“We’re just fighting a little virus,” said Johnson about some of the difficulties that have kept the team from the top three positions in qualifying. “That run there, we made big, big, big wholesale changes to my car. We’ll take that run and tune on it for tomorrow, which will be the best run of the weekend and hopefully step up into the top three or four. I feel a little better tonight than I did last night.

“I’m telling you, Indy is a tough place,” Johnson added. “Everyone just steps up their game. Everybody is just so close, within thousands. We’ve got more left. We know we can run about a hundredth or hundredth and a half quicker than that run. I think if we make the run we can make tomorrow, we’ll be in the top two or three.”

Fellow HEMI-powered driver V. Gaines took his Dodge Dart for a 6.629/208.71 run to put him ninth on the provisional qualifying sheets.

As much cooler conditions prevailed for Day 2 of qualifying at Lucas Oil Raceway, it provided the opportunity for much quicker qualifying runs and DSR driver Jack Beckman took full advantage.

Brainerd, Minnesota (Aug 17, 2014) – Mopar Pro Stock driver Jeg Coughlin Jr., also a four-time winner at this event, beat Larry Morgan and Deric Kramer with the JEGS.com Dodge Dart to advance to a semifinal match-up against Vincent Nobile. That meeting has now been rescheduled to occur at the U.S. Nationals during the fourth qualifying session for the factory hot rod category.

Coughlin’s HEMI®-powered teammate Allen Johnson, after earning his first No. 1 qualifier position at this venue, had a bye for the opening round then lined up his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” against Vincent Nobile. Unfortunately, irregular power fluctuations due to a spark plug malfunction hampered any forward motion for Johnson’s Dodge Dart in a second round loss.

Competing on a part-time basis, Dodge Avenger driver Deric Kramer used a .004 reaction time and a 6.64 second e.t. run to post a first round hole shot win over Greg Anderson’s 6.574 (209.39 mph) before his second round loss to Coughlin. HEMI-powered Dodge Dart driver V. Gaines, runner-up at this event last year, saw his day come to a quick end with a first round loss to Shane Gray.

While official points won’t be distributed until the finals for this event are completed at Indianapolis, Johnson currently falls to third in the Pro Stock standings behind new points leader Jason Line, who also advanced to the postponed semifinals, and Erica Enders Stevens in the second place after she suffered a first round loss. Coughlin sits in fourth place pending results from the rescheduled elimination rounds.

Brainerd, Minnesota (Aug 16, 2014) – Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson drove his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart to his first No. 1 qualifier position at Brainerd International Raceway in the hopes of earning his first title win at the 33rd annual Lucas Oil National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals on Sunday, while Don Schumacher Racing claimed three of the top four spots in Funny Car qualifying.

Johnson earned the top spot on the ladder for eliminations for the fifth time this season and a 36th time in his career with his elapsed time run posted in the second qualifying session on Friday with a 6.614-second (207.98 mph) pass. Johnson picked up two more bonus points on his final qualifying run, for a total of seven, by posting his second quickest pass of the weekend at 6.638 seconds /207.18 mile per hour. That came after his first qualifying attempt didn’t quite go as planned as the Mopar crew pulled the Dodge Dart from the start line when something didn’t feel right to the driver.

“We had a spark plug decide it wanted to crack and quit working during the burnout so instead of wasting some parts we decided to sit that one out,” said Johnson who will have a bye in the first round of eliminations. “I had a great car all weekend and the new Dodge Dart really likes this surface at Brainerd. It’s our best start here and I think we have a good game plan for tomorrow. That last run was pretty nice. Having a good shot at the track first round, without any way to lose it, will pay dividends because we can get after it a little more than we normally would if there was a car in the other lane. That will tell us how far we can push it.”

Reigning NHRA Pro Stock Champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. has advanced to five final elimination rounds at this event and will have his JEGS.com Mopar Dodge Dart seeded fifth based on its best lap in the third qualifying session with an elapsed time run of 6.636 seconds at 207.91 mph.

“Two days in the books here in Brainerd and we've found ourselves to have a very consistent racecar which is always a good thing," said Coughlin who will have Larry Morgan as his first round opponent. "The air wasn't as good today as it was Friday so we didn't see big improvements but we were working on fine-tuning things for game day tomorrow. We'll go over the data and zero in on a tune-up that should agree with the slightly cooler temperatures and better atmospheric conditions we're forecasted to have Sunday. We'll see if Mother Nature will take some of this thickness and moisture out of the air."

"We're looking for big things tomorrow," added Coughlin who is looking for his fifth win at the Minnesota venue and his third of the season. "If we can get some round wins early and get into those later rounds then I think we could walk away with another trophy. That's certainly the game plan for us."

Fellow HEMI-powered driver V. Gaines, who finished runner-up at last year’s event, will start the elimination rounds from the tenth spot based on his 6.669 second (207.98 mph) e.t. and will face off against Shane Gray in the opening round. Deric Kramer (6.756 /205.01) was 13th overall on the timing sheets and will lineup his Dodge Avenger against Greg Anderson.

Brainerd, Minnesota (Aug 15, 2014) – Without a title or a No.1 qualifier position to his credit at Brainerd International Raceway, Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson worked to rectify that as quickly as possible by going to the top of the provisional qualifying timing sheets at the 33rd annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals with his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart.

After posting the second quickest time in the first qualifying session with a 6.645-second (208.04 mile per hour) elapsed time pass, Johnson improved to a 6.614-second (207.98 mph) pass with his second lap to earn the provisional No.1 qualifier position. His pass was almost two-hundredths of a second quicker than Pro Stock points leader and rival Erica Enders-Stevens and her 6.630-second (207.69 mph) e.t. run.

“We absolutely murdered it the first 330 (feet) of the track and that’s what it takes in this bad air, just like Denver, you got to really get it down low and get your momentum going,” said Johnson who earned five of a possible six bonus points for his efforts on Friday and hopes to earn his fifth No.1 qualifier position of the season thus far after two more runs on Saturday. “We’re in countdown mode right now and we’re trying to get every single point we can. That’s what’s going to count when you get to the countdown.”

Johnson’s HEMI®-powered teammate and reigning NHRA Pro Stock World Champ Jeg Coughlin Jr. has four Pro Stock wins (1999, 2002, 2007, 2010) and five final round appearances at a venue he considers one of his favorites. Coughlin was fifth with his first run of 6.657 seconds/207.46 mph and improved on his second with a 6.636 sec. /207.91 mph pass, remaining in the same spot. While Coughlin finds himself third in a tight top-5 battle in the Pro Stock standings in anticipation for the NHRA “Countdown to the Championship”, with just two events left in the regular season, what he’s looking for specifically is momentum heading into the playoffs.

"They do reset the points and separate us all by 10 points from 1-10 for the start of the Countdown,” Coughlin said. “While you'd love to start higher up the grid, it's really a negligible difference between being third or fourth or second or third. It's more important to enter the Countdown with momentum, which we can start this weekend."

Last year’s runner-up finisher at Brainerd, V. Gaines drove his HEMI-powered Western Motorsports Dodge Dart from 12th on the scoring sheets in the first session to provisional tenth place spot with his best run of 6.669 seconds at 207.98 mph. The fourth Mopar competing this weekend at the Lucas Oil Nationals is the Dodge Avenger of Deric Kramer who sits in 13th place with his best run of 6.788 seconds /205.04 mph.

Kent, Washington (Aug 3, 2014) – No. 1 Pro Stock qualifier Allen Johnson and last year’s Funny Car national event winner Matt Hagan took their respective HEMI-powered Mopars to semifinal finishes at the scenic tree-lined Pacific Raceways track near Seattle, Washington, for the 27th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Northwest Nationals.

From his top seeded position on the eliminations ladder, Johnson had hoped not only to take his Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar Dodge Dart to the winner’s circle for a fifth time this season but also from second place to the points lead with the absence of his rival and category leader Erica Enders-Stevens from the last two national events. After posting the lowest elapsed times in each of four qualifying session, the odds were certainly in Johnson’s favor. Following a bye in the first round, Johnson posted a 6.569-second run at 201.87 mile per hour to beat Dave Connolly’s 6.589 sec / 210.28 mph pass in the second round to advance to a semifinal match against Greg Anderson.

But Johnson’s hopes to close out the three event NHRA western swing on a winning note and ahead in points were dashed when his factory hot road lost power due to a mechanical glitch after the 60 foot mark in his showdown with Anderson.

“One little mistake got us but you know we had a great car all weekend, a great team, great runs, great power and something to really work with,” said Johnson who remains second in the Pro Stock standings and just 32 points behind the leader with two national events left before the NHRA “Countdown to the Championship” playoffs begins. “The competition is close and you can’t make a single error but that’s what we did and we’ll learn from it. We’re in “countdown” mode now and won’t let little things like that happen again. We’re looking forward to the next event in Brainerd (Minnesota) which is an altitude track and we normally shine at those.”

HEMI-powered teammate and reigning NHRA Pro Stock World Champ Jeg Coughlin Jr. disposed of Larry Morgan in the opening round, only to have his day cut short on the start line against Anderson as well when his JEGS.com Mopar Dodge Dart made a sudden move to the left and launched his parachutes to halt any forward motion.

“That was odd and the first time I think I’ve shook one hard enough to have the parachutes come out of it,” said Coughlin who remains fourth in points. “We’re giving it 110 percent and we have a lot of faith in our teams to put our heads together and sort through some things. Allen’s (Johnson) car looked happy all weekend on every run except that last one. We’ll look to make both cars better for Brainerd and more importantly as we approach the countdown.”

Last week’s runner-up finisher at Sonoma Raceway, V. Gaines, drove his HEMI-powered Dodge Dart to victory over Matt Hartford, but then fell in the second round to eventual national title winner Jason Line who beat out his teammate Anderson in the final Pro Stock elimination.

Kent, Washington (Aug 2, 2014) – Mopar driver Allen Johnson earned his 35th career No. 1 qualifier position at the 27th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways near Seattle, Washington, and was quickest in all four qualifying session in preparation Sunday’s elimination rounds.

Johnson took the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart straight to the top of the Pro Stock eliminations ladder with his first qualifying lap on Friday by posting an elapsed time run of 6.535-second at 211.86 mile per hour and then posted the top times in each subsequent session to earn all 12 bonus points and earn his fourth pole position of the season. With just 15 Pro Stock entries qualified for eliminations, the No. 1 qualifier will get a bye in the first round. While Johnson’s only win in Seattle came in 2006, this year’s goal to return to the winner’s circle isn’t merely for a 25th career Wally trophy, but to finish up the three event NHRA western swing with the Pro Stock points lead.

“The Mopar guys did an awesome job to give me a very consistent race car, with low e.t. in all four rounds, to give me some important points heading into eliminations and the chance to take the points lead with round wins, so the rest is up to me,” Johnson said. “That last round the race track was probably more representative of what we will see tomorrow so I feel like we have a real solid race car. If we can be low e.t. every round tomorrow and the driver can do his job we have a real good chance to get it done.”

Runner-up at last year’s edition, reigning NHRA Pro Stock World Champ Jeg Coughlin Jr. will be seeded fourth for eliminations after he drove his Dodge Dart to a 6.553 sec / 210.97 pass on Friday after his JEGS.com crew worked through some issues with the Mopar from the previous race at Sonoma Raceway. Saturday’s first qualifying session didn’t go quite as planned and an engine change was made for the final run.

"It looked very promising the first couple runs but this morning, we tried something a little different and it didn't like that at all,” said Coughlin. “We ended up putting a fresh motor in for the last run, and it hooked real hard and drove out left and I looked like I was on a Sunday drive. Allen’s (Johnson) car has run really well. It's been glued to the track. We'll certainly migrate in that direction and that's the advantage of having a two-car team. I feel confident we'll get our hot rod tuned-up and go A to B real efficiently."

Coughlin will see 13th seed Larry Morgan as his first round opponent.

Fellow HEMI-powered Dodge Dart driver V. Gaines, runner-up finisher at Sonoma Raceway last week, was the sixth quickest run in qualifying with a 6.561 /211.10 pass to find himself matched-up against the Dodge Avenger of Matt Hartford who was 11th with his 6.597/ 210.67 effort. Fellow Dodge Avenger driver Deric Kramer was 12th on the score sheets (6.615 / 209.39) and will face off against fifth seed, Greg Anderson.

Kent, Washington (Aug 1, 2014) – The third and final stop on the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) western swing got under way at the scenic tree-lined Pacific Raceways near Seattle, Washington, with Allen Johnson driving his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart straight to the top of the Pro Stock category timing sheets to earn the provisional pole position in Friday qualifying.

Johnson posted the quickest pass in the first two rounds of qualifying with an elapsed time pass of 6.535-second at 211.86 mile per hour, but the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart was also the quickest of the factory hot rods in the second session by posting a 6.537 sec./211.83 mph pass to earn a total of six bonus points for his efforts on Friday, along with the provisional No.1 qualifier moniker. Following a sixth Mopar Mile High Nationals title at the first race of the western swing, Johnson is hoping to “bookend” the three race stint with his 25th career win this Sunday after the Mopar team worked on making some adjustments to the Dodge Dart set up after a challenging race day in Sonoma.

“We made two really good runs today, collected some important little points and we’re happy with the set up after making some wholesale changes from Sunday at Sonoma to here to try to make the car a little more race-able,” said Johnson who is looking for his first win at Seattle since 2006. “It seemed to really help so we’ll get after it again tomorrow and see what we can do. The goal is to collect as many qualifying points that we can and win this to try to close the gap on (points leader) Erica Enders-Stevens before the Countdown (to the Championship) begins.”

Reigning NHRA Pro Stock World Champ Jeg Coughlin Jr. drove his JEGS.com Mopar Dodge Dart to a runner-up finish at Pacific Raceways last season and is looking to earn a third season win this Sunday. In preparation, he drove his Mopar to a 6.553 sec / 210.97 pass to put him fourth in provisional qualifying, then was fourth quickest again for his second run by posting a 6.555 /211.13 pass.

Mopar teammates Johnson and Coughlin are second and fourth in the very competitive Pro Stock standings behind points leader Erica Enders-Stevens who is not competing this weekend.

Fellow HEMI-powered Dodge Dart driver V. Gaines, who made his third final round appearance of the season last weekend at Sonoma Raceway, was sixth quickest with a 6.561 /211 pass. Two Dodge Avengers are also in the mix at the Northwest Nationals as Matt Hartford sits in 10th place with his best run of 6.597/ 210.67 while Deric Kramer currently holds the 12th spot on the score sheets with a 6.615 second pass and best speed of 209.39 mph.

Sonoma, California (July 27, 2014) – Jeg Coughlin made it to the semifinal match-up against Gaines by first running down the Dodge Avenger of Deric Kramer after recovering from a late start with a .173 reaction time to run a 6.527-second lap. He then posted a .048 reaction time and 6.558 second (212.23 mph) elapsed time run to give him the win light in a close drag race against Greg Anderson’s .050 second reaction time and an e.t. of 6.563 seconds /211.73 mph in the second round to face Gaines.

“I had a good jump on V (Gaines) at the start line but I would have never guessed my car would strike the tires and react the way it did,” Coughlin said. “I tried to efficiently navigate it in order to calm it down and get it through the gears, but about that time I saw V on my right and knew it was over. We had great cars this weekend coming into game day today but we were just a little off. If we can take this result and turn it into something even more positive as we trek down the road and into the Countdown, then that's going to win us rounds, win us races, and hopefully another championship.”

While Coughlin drops a position in the standings behind event winner Line by just one point, the Mopar driver’s semifinal appearance helped assure his playoff berth.

Meanwhile, last weekend’s winner at the Mopar Mile High Nationals, Allen Johnson put his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart third on the eliminations ladder and in doing so clinched his playoff ticket following qualifications. Johnson advanced to the second round of Sunday’s eliminations with a win over Tommy Lee who had red light start, but as the track heated up and conditions changed, things didn’t go quite as planned in the following match-up against Dave Connolly when the Dodge Dart lost traction off the start.

“We had great HEMI horsepower and an “iffy” track but didn’t manage it correctly,” said Johnson who remains second in the standings. “Neither Jeg or I adapted to the change in conditions as well as others did. I think out of the last six pairs, three or four of them shook their tires but that’s not an excuse. For the most part it was a pretty decent showing for our camp so we’ll take what we learned here and go to Seattle and hopefully be able to correct it.”

Sonoma, California (July 26, 2014) – The elimination ladders are set for the 27th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Sonoma Nationals, the second stop on the three race NHRA western swing, and Mopar’s Pro Stock and Funny Car drivers are ready to test their mettle at Sonoma Raceway.

Allen Johnson and the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart secured the No. 3 qualifying position for Sunday’s Pro Stock eliminations with his quickest pass of the weekend on his final lap by posting an elapsed time run of 6.547 seconds / 212.16 mph pass. Johnson’s Mopar was second quickest in that final session to give him a total of six bonus points earned over four qualifying runs to officially clinch a playoff berth for the “Countdown to the Championship.” He will see Tommy Lee as his first round opponent on Sunday.

“The good news is that Jeg (Coughlin Jr.) and I are on opposite sides of the ladder so an all-Mopar final is in the realm of possibility on race day and that’s what we’re aiming for,” said Johnson, who would like to repeat the HEMI sweep that the Roy Johnson-tuned engines achieved last year on the NHRA western swing. “We broke a motor in the first session today, but it’s all in the recovery and better it happen today than tomorrow. We’re feeling pretty good about sending a HEMI to another final round.”

Reigning NHRA Pro Stock World Champ Jeg Coughlin Jr. was third quickest in the third qualifying session, earning a single bonus point, to put him fifth on the eliminations ladder with his best pass of 6.552 sec /212.03 mph. For a second consecutive week, Coughlin will have Deric Kramer and his Dodge Avenger, seeded 12th with a 6.613 / 209.56, as his first round opponent. The JEGS.com Mopar Dodge Dart can clinch a berth in the playoffs with a second round appearance on Sunday.

Fellow HEMI-powered Dodge Dart driver V. Gaines was ninth overall with a 6.583 /211.16 pass and will see Chris McGaha in the opposite lane for the first round of eliminations. Matt Hartford and his Dodge Avenger qualified 11th with a 6.613/ 211.00 effort to match up against Dave Connolly.

Competitor Shane Gray took his third pole position of the year by dislodging Friday’s provisional No. 1 Jason Line in the third qualifying session with a 6.539 second / 212.13 mph pass and will have a bye in the first round with 15 qualified entries for eliminations.

Sonoma, California (July 25, 2014) – Following the mile-high challenge of altitude racing in the Rocky Mountains last week near Denver, the Mopar contingent is now back to running at sea-level amidst the vineyards of Northern California and ready to make a return to the winners circle at Sonoma Raceway for the 27th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Sonoma Nationals, the second stop on the three race NHRA western swing.

Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson picked up right where he left off last weekend after conquering Thunder Mountain for a sixth time at the Mopar Mile High Nationals, by setting the quickest pass in the first round of qualifying with a 6.606-second run at 209.69 mph. The “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart was then was provisionally No. 3 after posting a 6.558 second / 210.97 mph pass on his second qualifying run as competitor Jason Line took the provisional pole position with a 6.550 second / 210.93 mph lap.

The HEMI-powered factory hot rod entries, tuned by Roy Johnson, swept the western swing last season with wins by his son at Denver and then Johnson & Johnson teammate Vincent Nobile with wins in Sonoma and Seattle. After Johnson’s victory at Bandimere Speedway last weekend, the Mopar driver would like nothing more than to repeat that feat along with his teammate Jeg Coughlin Jr. at the next two events. The pair is battling one another for the second and third place spots respectively in the Pro Stock standings behind points leader Erica Enders-Stevens who is not competing this weekend.

Winner at Sonoma in 2003 and 2010 as well as runner-up in 2008 and last year, reigning NHRA Pro Stock World Champ Coughlin Jr. took his JEGS.com Mopar Dodge Dart for a 6.574 sec /210.64 mph lap to post the sixth quickest run in Friday qualifying.

Fellow HEMI-powered Dodge Dart driver V. Gaines was eighth quickest with a 6.602 /209.98 pass. The Dodge Avenger of Deric Kramer was 10th on the score sheets with a 6.621 /209.49 pass and Matt Hartford, also aboard a Dodge Avenger, was right behind him in 11th place with a 6.621/ 209.49 elapsed time run.

Morrison, Colorado (July 20, 2014) – In the game of thrones to decide the king of Thunder Mountain, Team Mopar driver Allen Johnson once again proved that he is the undisputed ruler at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals. The “Magneti Marelli Quality Auto Parts Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart NHRA Pro Stock driver claimed his sixth event crown in eight years at Bandimere Speedway, located in the picturesque Rocky Mountains, and his third straight win at sponsor Mopar’s headline event, defeating J&J Racing teammate Jeg Coughlin Jr. in an all-Mopar final fight. The triumph is the 24th of Johnson’s career and fourth of the season, and comes during Mopar’s marking of the 50th anniversary of the 426 HEMI engine, as well as the celebration of 100 years of the Dodge brand.

Johnson also continued another amazing streak, advancing to the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals final round for the eighth-consecutive year. Johnson’s win is the sixth of the season for Mopar HEMI-powered Pro Stock competitors, and at least one Mopar-powered Pro Stock or Funny Car driver has advanced to the final round at nine consecutive events, dating back to the NHRA Houston race in April.

“Congratulations to Allen (Johnson) and the team for driving the Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar Dodge Dart to an incredible sixth career win at Bandimere Speedway,” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group’s service, parts and customer-care brand. “What a great way to add to our celebration of the 426 Race HEMI at our signature event. Four wins and five final elimination appearances this season to date show how much work and determination Allen and his Mopar team have put in to battle a tough Pro Stock class in defense of the Championship.”

With track temps over 100 degrees, Johnson started hot out of the No. 2 spot, unleashing a 6.933-second elapsed time and the track-record fastest speed ever at Bandimere Speedway, 199.23 mph, to send home Tommy Lee in the first round. Johnson took down Chris McGaha to move on to the semifinals, clocking a 6.959/198.50 winning pass in his Magneti Marelli Mopar Dodge Dart. The Greeneville, Tennessee native then ran down Dave Connolly with a 6.952/198.64 to advance to his eighth-consecutive final round appearance at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals, and the 50th final of his career.

Defending 2013 NHRA Pro Stock Series world champ Jeg Coughlin Jr.’s road to the final began from the No. 4 spot with a 6.940/198.44 pass and a victory over Mopar HEMI Pro Stock driver Deric Kramer. In a heavyweight quarterfinals showdown of prior Pro Stock champs, Coughlin earned the win light over Greg Anderson, recording a 6.944/198.44 run. In the semis, with teammate Johnson cheering him on at the top end, Coughlin used a lightning-quick .002 reaction time off the starting line in his JEGS.com/Mopar Dodge Dart and a 6.931/198.76 pass to down another Pro Stock champ, Jason Line, and advance to his fifth final-round at Bandimere, fourth of 2014 and 97th of his career.

In a matchup of Mopar Dodge Darts carrying Roy Johnson-supplied HEMI engines under the hood, Coughlin was a bit too early on the tree, fouling out on a red-light as Johnson drove to his quickest run of eliminations, a 6.930/198.61, to seize his sixth Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals crown. The showdown also marked the third straight all-Mopar Pro Stock final at Bandimere (Johnson defeated Colorado native V. Gaines in the money round in 2012 and 2013). Hometown favorite Gaines exited in round one, as did Mopar-powered pilot Matt Hartford.

“This team just continues to find a way to do it,” said Johnson, who with the victory is now second-time all-time in Pro Stock wins at the venue, located near Denver, behind only Pro Stock legend Bob Glidden. “We want to win here for Mopar and Magneti Marelli, and my guys step up and I step up. It’s a confidence thing. It’s just deep in our gut and we keep doing it.”

Johnson was also in line for his fifth straight No. 1 spot at Bandimere before losing it on the final pass of qualifying on Saturday, a challenge to his domination he didn’t take lightly.

“It’s extra motivation,” said Johnson. “It puts fire in my belly when we get hit with like something like that. He (Jason Line) took my number one spot away from me, and you’re dang tootin’ it fired me up. It fired up Jeg (Coughlin Jr.) up. When Jeg took him out in the semifinals, I was ready to jump on the hood of his car when he came around the corner. Both of us in the finals — it was a great day at that point.

“This was the first race I ever qualified at in 1996, and that is the only race that I qualified for that year. I have qualified for every single one (here) since then. It’s very important to us. It’s almost like a championship to us to excite all the Mopar executives and everyone that comes out to watch us, but it gets tougher every year.”

Also announced today was a three-year extension of Mopar’s title rights sponsorship of the Mile-High Nationals, which began in 1989. The brand’s current 26-year relationship with the Bandimere’s family Thunder Mountain track and continuous support of the national event is the longest running title sponsorship in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, and among the longest in all of motorsports.

“Mopar and the mountain and me, we’re married,” said Johnson. “We’re going to take that deal and run with it the next three years and break Bob Glidden’s record and be the king of the mountain for a long time.”

“The Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals is the flagship event for our brand, our fans and our customers, and this agreement reinforces our commitment to our ‘home track,’ Bandimere Speedway, and to NHRA drag racing,” said Gorlier. “Together, we have made the annual visit to ‘Thunder Mountain’ an iconic stop on the NHRA schedule.”

Morrison, Colorado (July 19, 2014) – Allen Johnson saw his bid for a fifth straight No. 1 spot at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals end on the final pass of the final qualifying session on Saturday at Bandimere Speedway, but a much more important streak remains very much alive for the “Magneti Marelli Quality Auto Parts Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart Pro Stock driver. Johnson will start strong from the No. 2 position against Tommy Lee in the first round of Sunday eliminations as he seeks his third straight win and sixth in the last eight years at his primary sponsor Mopar’s headline event.

Johnson claimed the provisional pole during Friday’s second session with a 6.928-second elapsed time, paired with a track record speed of 198.90 mph. Johnson, as well as the rest of the Pro Stock field, was unable to improve that run on Saturday until Jason Line nudged Johnson down to the second position on the final pass of the day. The reigning king of Thunder Mountain posted a 6.966/198.41 and 6.982/197.83 in his two attempts on Saturday and feels optimistic about his chances of keeping his crown.

“No. 1 would have been great just to show off a little for Mopar, as that’s one of the reasons we like to do so well here,” said Johnson, who has advanced to seven consecutive final-round appearances at Bandimere Speedway. “We’ve had a few problems up here that have plagued us this weekend. It affected Jeg (Coughlin Jr.) the first two runs and me on that last run, but we’re focused on getting them worked out for race day.

“One of the key differences from past years is that this is a brand new Pro Stock Dodge Dart, and it’s our first time here at Bandimere with it. We’re still learning and haven’t got it all worked out. Still, we’re No. 2 and starting from a good spot. We have some stellar competition, but I guarantee this Mopar crew will go out there fighting tomorrow.”

The JEGS.com/Mopar Dodge Dart crew and defending 2013 NHRA Pro Stock series champ Jeg Coughlin Jr. showed much fight in a rebound day on Saturday at Bandimere. Ranked 13th following Friday qualifying, Coughlin improved to sixth with a 6.953/198.67 in Q3 and then jumped to fourth with a 6.937/198.73, earning three bonus points on the day. Coughlin will face off with another Mopar-powered Pro Stocker, No. 13 starter Derick Kramer, in round one on Sunday.

Hometown favorite and Colorado native V. Gaines (No. 6, 6.944/198.15), runner-up to Johnson at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals in 2012 and 2013, will match up with Dave Connolly to begin eliminations. Mopar HEMI Dodge racer Matt Hartford (No. 12, 6.984/197.31) will battle Greg Anderson, meaning five Mopar-powered Pro Stock cars will race for the money on Sunday.

Morrison, Colorado (July 18, 2014) – Defending title winner of the Mopar Mile High National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals, Allen Johnson, picked things up right where he left off last year by earning the provisional No.1 qualifier position after two sessions at Bandimere Speedway near Denver, Colorado, on Friday evening.

Johnson not only has won five Pro Stock titles in seven years (2013, 2012, 2010, 2009, 2007) at Mopar’s signature event, but also has seven consecutive final round appearances and four straight No.1 qualifier positions at the scenic Rocky Mountain drag strip. This weekend, he is working to keep those streaks of success going with the new “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart which made its debut at the Gatornationals and that Johnson has already taken to the winner’s circle for two of his three wins this season. The HEMI-powered driver went to the top of the score sheets on his second qualifying pass with an elapsed time run of 6.928 seconds at 198.90 miles per hour to set the track speed record.

“We were hoping to run a 6.91-second pass,” said Johnson who is looking to remain the top seed for eliminations after two more qualifying sessions on Saturday. “We left that much on the table but we’ll go out there tomorrow and keep tuning on it and see if we can do better.”

“It’s your sponsor’s race and it’s the 50th anniversary of the HEMI and everything about this event makes us step up and do it,” added Johnson when asked what it was about this track that breeds success for his Mopar team. “We’ve really worked our tails off at this track testing over the years, trying to come up with a package that is superior, so that we can impress all the Mopar and Chrysler executives that come to out to see us this race.”

Johnson, however, was quick to point out that it has become much more difficult to stay on top as the competition in Pro Stock is stronger than ever and his competitors have made obvious improvements at this track.

“The gap has shrunk tremendously as I think in years past we were maybe two-hundreds of a second ahead of the pack and now we are just one thousandths ahead. The other guys are figuring out how to run the track too. But you know we’ve got a great Dodge Dart, we’ve got great engineers behind us, and we’ve got all the people in the stands. This place is tremendous and the Bandimere family does a great job so all the stars are aligned for us to do well and we’re going to do our best to put that 50th anniversary HEMI in the winner’s circle.”

Colorado native and driver of the HEMI-powered Western Motorsports Dodge Dart, V. Gaines is going to try to give Johnson a run for his money after finishing runner-up at his home event the last two years. Gaines took the provisional fourth spot in qualifying with his elapsed time pass of 6.944 seconds at 198.15 mph.

Driver of the JEGS.com Dodge Dart, Jeg Coughlin Jr., has back-to-back wins (1998-99) and four final round appearances at Bandimere Speedway, but had a more difficult time on his qualifying runs in Friday’s sessions than he expected and sits 13th in the provisional order after posting a 7.024-second e.t. at 197.02 mph as his best pass of the day.

A total of five Mopars are competing in the Pro Stock class at this event with the addition of Matt Hartford aboard his Dodge Avenger in the ninth spot (6.984 / 197.31) and Deric Kramer in his Dodge Avenger with the 11th quickest run (6.993/ 196.87) of the day.

Golden, Colorado (July 17, 2014) – A full slate of activities for the Mopar Mile High National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals was kicked off on Thursday morning at Red Rocks Park, a dramatic geological formation near Bandimere Speedway, by the firing-up of the Don Schumacher Racing Dodge (DSR) Charger R/T Funny Car driven by Matt Hagan in order to “wake-up Denver” and let fans know Mopar drivers and teams are in town and revving to get the weekend started.

The Mopar Express Lane Crew helmed by team owner Don Schumacher warmed up the Funny Car, which features a special 50th anniversary tribute to the legendary 426 Race HEMI® engine for this weekend’s national event, in front of fans in the early morning hours with the sounds of the 10,000 horsepower HEMI-powered Dodge Charger R/T echoing off the picturesque rocks surrounding the amphitheater plaza at Red Rocks. The 35th edition of Mopar’s signature event will be held at the Bandimere’s family quarter-mile Thunder Mountain drag strip at 5800 feet above sea level on July 18-20.

“We wanted to find a fun way to start the weekend off with some HEMI thunder of our own,” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group LLC’s service, parts and customer-care brand, who was in attendance for the warm-up. “After celebrating 25 years of title sponsorship of this fantastic event in 2013, this year our focus is on commemorating the 50th anniversary of the iconic 426 Race HEMI. The legendary engine is still such a vital part of Mopar’s heritage and a key ingredient in the success we’ve had at Bandimere Speedway over these years. We’re very proud to be able to continue and add to that that legacy thanks to the hard work of our Mopar teams in Pro Stock and Funny Car classes.”

“We’re proud of the success the legendary HEMI engine continues to have on race tracks as that is what persistently reinforces the quality of the Mopar brand, not just making it synonymous with the sought after muscle car but also with quality service and parts,” Gorlier said. “We are especially proud to invite the father of the HEMI, Tom Hoover, to join us in that celebration as Grand Marshall of the Mopar Mile High Nationals.”

Widely regarded as the “Father of the 426 HEMI,” Tom Hoover spearheaded a performance revolution during his decades of service with Chrysler Corporation, playing an instrumental role in the creation of early racing programs, iconic engines and products that still fuel the Mopar and Dodge brands to this day.

In addition to his work on the 426 HEMI “elephant” engine — so nicknamed for its size, strength and power — Hoover also was instrumental in the development of early Funny Cars, small block engine NHRA Pro Stock cars and a long list of additional performance parts. Hoover was also a founding member of the Ramchargers race team, the legendary group of drag racers/Chrysler Corporation employees whose passion for quarter-mile competition helped launch the company’s motorsports program during the dawn of the performance era.

To complete the countdown to this weekend’s national event will be the 13th edition of the popular Mopar Block Party festivities held on Thursday, July 17th, from 6 to 10 p.m. (MT) between 11th and 13th street in downtown Golden, Colo. where fans are invited to take part in a large variety of free activities.

They include an All-Mopar driver autograph session featuring five-time and defending title winner, Allen Johnson, five-time and reigning NHRA Pro Stock World Champion, Jeg Coughlin Jr., and runner-up the last two years at Bandimere Speedway, V. Gaines. Also joining the factory Mopar Hot Rod drivers will be 2011 Funny Car Champion Matt Hagan and 2012 Champ Jack Beckman, teammate Tommy Johnson Jr., as well as DSR Top Fuel drivers Tony Schumacher and Spencer Massey.

On display will be Mopar’s NHRA race cars, classic cars and special display vehicles, as well as Mopar product demonstrations. The evening will be hosted by local radio personality Willie B. of KBPI 106.7 FM and highlights will also include a live concert with local Golden vendors offering food and drink for purchase. Also broadcasting live from the street party will be Kurt Hansen's “Race Central Radio on Yahoo Sports, ESPN Sports Radio And KFNX AM 100 Phoenix presented By Office Liquidators, Tuff Shed and Bandimere Speedway”.

As Mopar teams prepare to hit the track at scenic Rocky Mountain drag strip there is plenty of anticipation for the event that serves as the opener of the NHRA western swing, which includes stops in Sonoma, California, and Seattle, Washington. Last year, the Roy Johnson tuned Pro Stock HEMI engines swept the western swing and are hoping to repeat the feat starting with a win at the Mopar Mile High Nationals

The odds favor Allen Johnson who has been the king of Thunder Mountain earning five wins (2013, 2012, 2010, 2009, 2007), four No. 1 Qualifier award, seven straight final round appearances and has posted nine out of the ten fastest passes at this track. He and Mopar teammate Jeg Coughlin Jr, along with HEMI-powered hometown favorite, V. Gaines, will be taking their new Dodge Dart hot rods down the track for the first time since their debut earlier this season.

In Funny Car, Hagan would like to take his HEMI 50th anniversary Mopar to the winners circle for this first time while Beckman would like to add a victory to the two titles earned in 2012 and 2007 and three final round appearances in the past seven years. Tommy Johnson Jr. has seen victory circle at Bandimere Speedway in other classes but will work to take his Funny Car Dodge Charger R/T there this weekend while Ron Capps, who stands third in the Funny Car points, would love to use a win in Denver to propel him further up the standings.

Norwalk, Ohio (Sunday, July 6) – In Pro Stock action, both Mopars won their respective opening round match-ups to advance and face one another in the second round, with Jeg Coughlin Jr.’s JEGS.com Dodge Dart earning lane choice over Allen Johnson’s “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart.

Johnson won the HEMI showdown with a 6.609-second (209.92 mph) run to Coughlin’s e.t. of 6.658 seconds (209.17 mph) after he had some traction issues on the difficult track.

“The lane got Jeg (Coughlin Jr.) earlier and then bit me in the next round,” said Johnson after his loss in the semifinals to Dave Connolly when both cars battled track condition but his opponent recovered to cross the line first. “He (Connolly) just did a better job getting it into second gear than I did. If I had dropped the clutch and shifted into second we’d have went straight down and won, but the car moved to the right and I couldn’t get back on the throttle as quick as he did and that was the end of it. When you run first out like that it’s tough to get down the race track and they did a better job than we did."

The Pro Stock title at Norwalk was won by points leader Erica Enders-Stevens who drove to her fourth winner’s circle appearance this season. Johnson took over second place from Coughlin who is just 25 point behind in third.

“The good news is that Jeggy and I are right there,” Johnson said. “The bad news is that Erica (Enders-Stevens) gained more points on us. I guess Jeg and I will battle for second going into the Countdown (to the Championship) but the good news is the points will reset for the playoffs.”

Johnson and his Mopar team now prepare to head to Denver, Colo., for Mopar’s signature event at the Mile High Nationals where they have five wins (2013, 2012, 2010, 2009, 2007) and have earned the No. 1 qualifier award four consecutive times.

“I’d like to go into the Mopar Mile High Nationals feeling a little better that I am in this moment but that event is just so fantastic that it’s easy to get back up for it,” Johnson said. “You feel a certain amount of pressure to continue the success we’ve had at Bandimere Speedway but at the same time you know you can do it and we really just want to do it again.”

Norwalk, Ohio (Saturday, July 5) – In the Pro Stock qualifying, Allen Johnson took his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart down the track in 6.564 seconds (211.63 mph) in the third session to post the third quickest pass of the round and earn an extra bonus point. For his final run, Johnson battled the left lane and turned his car off early as a result, but remained third overall based on his Friday night run of 6.532 second (211.89 mph) and will see Larry Morgan in the first round of eliminations. The No.1 qualifier position went to points leader Eric Enders-Stevens with her best run of 6.523 sec at 212.63 mph.

Mopar teammate and hometown favorite, Jeg Coughlin Jr. ran a 6.595 second e.t. at 211.49 mph in his third qualifying run for the sixth best time of the session and had the semblance of a strong final run but opted out of the throttle when he came a bit too close to the centerline. The Ohio native’s sixth place spot on the eliminations ladder was earned Friday night when the JEGS.com Dodge Dart posted a pass of 6.554 (212.03 mph).

"I'm confident going into tomorrow," said Coughlin who will begin his day with lane choice over Rodger Brogden. "We ran a little different set of tires during Q3 in preparation for tomorrow, and I think we're going to be one of those dark horses. We know we've got the power under the hood, we know we can make the right calls in the pits and on the track, and I know I can hop behind the wheel and do what I love to do. It should be a great day tomorrow."

“The whole game tomorrow is going to be lane choice,” said Johnson about the chances of getting one of the team’s HEMI-powered cars to the winner’s circle. “The right lane during the day is better and probably worth a couple hundredths of a second at least, while the left lane is less than ideal. We both got lane choice but qualified opposite one another so we’ll have to meet second round if we both win. Jeggy (Coughlin) really made a good run on that last run he just got over towards the centerline and had to lift, but he was fixing to be quickest car of the round so that set up will come over to us tomorrow too. That’s the benefit of working as teammates. We’ve both got a good package for tomorrow.”

Norwalk, Ohio (Friday, July 4) – Mopar teams in both Pro Stock and Funny Car classes have combined to string together six consecutive winning weekends heading into qualifying for the eighth annual Summit Racing Equipment National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals, to kick off the second half of the 2014 Mello Yello Drag Racing series season, and there is plenty of motivation to keep that streak going for each individual Dodge driver.

Rather than the sweltering heat that has been common place for the Independence Day weekend event, the air temperature for the start of qualifying on Friday late afternoon started at 75 degrees Fahrenheit (117 degree track temperature) and dropped steadily throughout the evening, setting the scene for one track record breaking run after another.

Allen Johnson is looking to take his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart to the winner’s circle on Sunday for a fourth time this season as he battles his HEMI-powered teammate, Jeg Coughlin Jr., for second place in the Pro Stock standings, with just one point deficit heading to Norwalk. Johnson drove to the top of the timing sheet with his first and quickest elapsed time run of 6.542 second (211.63 mile per hour) to set the track record, only to be outdone by rival Erica Enders-Stevens who took the provisional pole with a 6.523 (212.63 mph) pass lowering the track record for low e.t. and top speed. Johnson ended up third after two sessions.

For five-time Pro Stock Champion and Ohio native Jeg Coughlin Jr., who has won national events at 24 different NHRA facilities and is the all-time leader in that unique category, his home race presents one particular challenge for him; it is one of only two facilities he has not earned a Wally. While victory at the Epping, N.H., track eluded him at the second edition of that event last month, Coughlin is hoping his eighth attempt at Norwalk’s Motorsports Park this weekend will end with success in getting it off his bucket list and add a third win to his season tally. After the first two qualifying sessions, Coughlin’s Dodge Dart sits in the provisional sixth place spot with his quickest elapsed time run of 6.554 seconds at 212.03 mph.

Fellow Dodge Dart driver, V. Gaines, is looking for his first win of the season after two runner-up appearances earlier this season. Gaines sits 14th in qualifying after losing traction on his first run and then drifting out of the groove on his second, but posted a 6.628 second pass (190.40 mph).

Joliet, Illinois (Sunday, June 29) – Eliminations for the Mopar contingent in Pro Stock competition didn’t fare quite as well at Route 66 Raceway. No.1 qualifier, Allen Johnson lost his chance to take the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart past the second round after losing on a holeshot to Dave Connolly with a .003 second margin of victory.

Last year’s event winner, Jeg Coughlin Jr. didn’t get a chance to repeat after his JEGS.com Dodge Dart jumped the green light start by .001-seconds in his second round match-up against Vincent Nobile. Nobile went on to the Pro Stock title win on a hole shot against teammate Jason Line.

This marked fourth time this year that the reigning NHRA Pro Stock Champion has had a premature exit from eliminations due to a red-light start, but the Mopar driver remained philosophical about it.

"The racing out here is at such a high level that you have to push everything to the edge," Coughlin said. "We've come up just a few thousandths of a second short a few times this year, but we have a bunch of times where we've been on the right end of that same situation, so I tend to not let it bother me.”

“I hate it for the guys because they continue to give Allen (Johnson) and I great race cars," said Coughlin who despite the second round loss remains second in the standing and just one point ahead of his teammate. "But we won't hang our heads. There's too much to be excited about, and we're proud of what we've done to get up to second place in the points.”

Fellow HEMI-powered driver V. Gaines suffered a similar fate with his own red-light foul in the first round of eliminations.

Joliet, Illinois (Saturday, June 28) – It was a strong qualifying effort for Mopar at the 17th annual Route 66 National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals near Chicago, that saw Allen Johnson earn his third Pro Stock No.1 qualifier honor of the season, and had Tommy Johnson Jr. drive his Funny Car to his first 3-second run for the pole position.

Allen Johnson followed up the Friday qualifying performance that put him atop the time sheets with an elapsed time run of 6.574-seconds (209.43 miles per hour), with two more strong passes in his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart to give him a total of 11 all-important bonus points for his efforts and provide him his 34th career pole position.

“Conditions today weren’t as favorable as they were last night; it was a bit warmer and more humid but the track stayed awesome,” said Johnson, who second quick on his third run and then fastest on his final run. “Our Magneti Marelli Mopar team did a heck of a job with consistency and we were No. 1 in three out of the four runs, so that speaks volume of their talents.”

“We’re feeling more comfortable with the new car after having run in great conditions and bad conditions,” said Johnson who has three wins to date this season and two aboard the new Dodge Dart. “We’ve gotten good notes on it and we’re feeling very comfortable.”

Mark Hogan will be Johnson’s opponent in the opening round of eliminations on Sunday.

Defending winner of this national event, Jeg Coughlin Jr., remained third on the score sheets behind his Mopar teammate with his e.t. of 6.604 seconds (209.04 mph) in the JEGS.com Dodge Dart, and will be looking for his sixth win at Route 66 Raceway, where he already has more wins than any other NHRA driver. He’ll face Larry Morgan as his first opponent on the eliminations ladder.

"We've put one of our team cars (Allen Johnson's Magneti Marelli Dodge Dart) on the pole and we're No. 3, so I'd have to say we're pretty pleased,” said Coughlin who has two wins and is second in Pro Stock standing, just one point ahead of his teammate. “Hopefully, Allen and I can race through the ladder tomorrow and meet each other in the final round. That's always the plan and so far it's set up that way with us being on opposite sides of the ladder. We'll see how it goes; one round at a time."

Fellow HEMI-powered driver, V. Gaines, who had two runner-up finishes early in the year, qualified his Dodge Dart 12th with his best e.t. run of 6.643 seconds (209.01 mph) and will see Shane Gray in the first round.

Joliet, Illinois (Friday, June 27) – With either a Pro Stock or Funny Car title win at each of the last five National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) national events, Mopar teams and drivers seemed particularly motivated to keep that streak alive with their efforts in Friday qualifying for the 17th annual Route 66 NHRA Nationals in Joliet, Illinois, near Chicago.

Allen Johnson drove his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart to the top of the time sheets in both Friday Pro Stock qualifying sessions to take the provisional No.1 qualifier position with the quickest elapsed time run of 6.574 seconds at 209.43 miles per hour.

“The track cooled off 25-30 degrees and this track is one of the best racing surfaces on the tour, and that parlayed into just really ‘getting after’ it down in first gear,” said Johnson who has two No.1 qualifier positions this season and hoping to hold on to his provisional one through Saturday. “The Mopar Magneti Marelli team just hit it perfect on that run. There was nothing left. We made two of probably the best runs we’ve made this year. We’ve been a little inconsistent from time to time so maybe we are starting our run of consistency.”

While weather conditions call for heat and humidity throughout the weekend, Johnson won’t be complaining.

“The HEMI (engines) seem to come to life in the humidity and we like these kinds of conditions. It’s going to be hot and muggy all weekend and we’ll take it.”

The defending title holder at Route 66 Raceway, Jeg Coughlin Jr. was close behind his Mopar teammate posting with the third quickest run of the day at 6.604 seconds (209.04 mph) in the JEGS.com Dodge Dart. Coughlin qualified third last year and went on to drive to his fifth win at this track, the most of any active NHRA driver for this national event.

Coming into this event, Coughlin and Johnson are second and third, respectively, in the Pro Stock championship standings with just 13 points separating them, and chasing their opponent and category leader Eric Enders-Stevens, who has a 187 point lead.

Fellow HEMI-powered driver, V. Gaines, who has two runner-up finishes so far this season, rounded out the top-12 provisional spots with an e.t. of 6.643 seconds (209.01 mph) aboard his Dodge Dart.

Epping, New Hampshire (Sunday, June 21) – Defending Pro Stock title winner, Allen Johnson, had a rough road through qualifying to find himself 12th on the eliminations ladder, his lowest starting position in three years, and pitted against his HEMI®-powered teammate Jeg Coughlin Jr. for the first round of competition at New England Dragway. While Coughlin’s JEGS.com Dodge Dart had the starting line advantage, Johnson’s “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart crossed the finish line first with a 6.551 elapsed time run at 213.43 mph after his teammate’s car broke a clutch finger while transitioning between fourth and fifth gear to run a 6.563 at 208.59mph.

After his Mopar made a move towards centerline in a second round match-up against Shane Tucker, Johnson benefitted when his opponent had a problem of his own, giving him a chance to get back on the throttle for the round win to set up a semifinal match-up against Jonathan Gray. Johnson would lose to Gray on a hole shot but finds himself within 13 points of his second place Mopar teammate, Coughlin, in the Pro Stock standings.

“It wasn’t our greatest weekend but we had a little luck here and there today and made a good run on that last one,” said Johnson of his 6.525 second (213.60 mph) pass in a losing effort after posting a .074 second reaction time to Gray’s.006 light and 6.583-second e.t. “I just made a mental mistake on the starting line, had to reposition my foot on the gas pedal and the yellow was already on. That’s totally on me but we’ll take this semifinal finish to the next two and hopefully get our Dodge Dart back on target and in the winner’s circle.”

While V. Gaines and his HEMI-powered Dodge Dart did not advance past the first round, he remains eighth in the standings. The New England Nationals Pro Stock title was won by Dave Connolly.

Epping, New Hampshire (Saturday, June 20) – It was a good news and bad news kind of day for the Mopar entries at New England Dragway after four qualifying sessions were completed to set the eliminations ladder for Sunday’s 2nd Annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) New England Nationals.

The good news for Mopar driver Jeg Coughlin Jr. was that he left his mark at New England Dragway by setting the track record for speed in both Friday Pro Stock sessions in the JEGS.com Dodge Dart and added two bonus points to his tally for running second quickest in the first qualifying session. His best 6.497 elapsed time under the lights on Friday at a track record 214.25 mph also put him fifth on the eliminations ladder. Another positive is that Coughlin has been riding a hot streak with two wins, a runner-up and a semifinal in the four events leading up to this weekend for a 13-2 round-win record in that span.

It was a tougher qualifying effort for defending Pro Stock title winner, Allen Johnson, who after posting an elapsed time run of 6.538 sec (212.79 mph) for his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart’s first lap on Friday for a provisional fifth place spot had a spark plug issue and lost traction on his next two attempts. The good news is that Johnson recovered in the final session to run his quickest and fastest lap with a 6.528-second (213.40 mph) e.t. but it was only good enough to give him the 12th spot in qualifying. The bad news is that means he’ll face his HEMI-powered teammate Coughlin as his first round opponent in Pro Stock eliminations.

It has been either feast or famine for Johnson this season. The good news is he has had four final round appearances this season and three of them were wins. The bad news is he has also had five first-round losses, one of which was to his teammate in Atlanta where Coughlin’s hot streak started last month.

“The only time you really want to face your teammate is in the final round and that happened in Topeka with my last win not too long ago,” Johnson said. “Jeggie (Coughlin Jr.)’s been on a roll here lately but I’m not ready to give up so easy and lose a third first round in a row. Those really hurt our points and we need to go rounds and play a bit of catch up on Erica (Enders-Stevens) who has a good lead on Jeg and me right now. I’m defending winner here and I’m not ready to give that title up just yet.”

Fellow HEMI-powered Dodge Dart driver V. Gaines made some good gains through qualifying, posting the third quickest time of the third session to improve his e.t. to 6.525 second (213.23 mph) which seeded him 11th behind pole winner Shane Gray. Gaines will face Vincent Nobile in the first round of Pro Stock eliminations.

Epping, New Hampshire (Friday, June 20) – Near perfect track conditions on Friday evening provided Mopar teams and drivers the opportunity to make it a record breaking weekend in a return to New England Dragway this weekend for the 2nd Annual NHRA New England Nationals, just north of Boston, in Epping, New Hampshire.

On both Friday Pro Stock qualifying runs, Mopar’s Jeg Coughlin Jr. set the track record for speed in the JEGS.com Dodge Dart, first with a 213.94 mile per hour pass, and then raised the bar in cooler evening temperatures at 214.25 mph. His first elapsed time run of 6.519 seconds put him second on the score sheets behind competitor and points leader Erica Enders-Steven, who lowered the e.t. track record to 6.514 seconds. Coughlin dropped to fifth after the second session behind provisional pole sitter Shane Gray who bettered the track record with an e.t. of 6.485 seconds.

Coughlin, however, is on a roll with two wins, a runner-up and a semifinal in the four events leading up to the New England Nationals and a 13-2 round-win record since the Atlanta event last month. New England Dragway remains only one of just two active national event facilities (along with Norwalk) where the Mopar driver has yet to win a race. He had a semifinal finish at the inaugural event in 2013.

"I'd love to add a win there to my résumé,” said Coughlin. “Still, what you've done in the past and the various places where we've won doesn't give us any sort of advantage heading into a fresh race. We all start at zero, and we're OK with that."

The defending Pro Stock title winner, Allen Johnson, was a bit conservative in his first lap, driving his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart to a 6.538 sec (212.79 mph) pass and the fifth quickest run of the session. His second attempt however was thwarted by an electrical issue and with improved conditions and quicker times run by most entries, it dropped the HEMI-powered driver to the 11th spot on the qualifying sheets.

“We made a pretty decent pass on the first run and left a little on the table but then had a malfunction on the second run that has us scratching our head a little,” said Johnson who has combined with Coughlin to win three of the last four national event. “It’s good luck that we have the issue now instead of Sunday because we’re looking to defend our win. We love it here. The track, the air and especially the fans make this such a great event. Conditions won’t be quite as perfect for tomorrow’s qualifying but the morning session might be close and we should make up some spots. Sunday is what counts.”

Fellow HEMI-powered Dodge Dart driver V. Gaines saw his 6.551 second (211.89 mph) run put him 12th.

Bristol, Tenn. (Sunday, June 15) –In stark contrast to the Funny Car win celebrations, disappointment reigned in the Mopar Pro Stock camp as crowd favorite Allen Johnson, who has yearned for an elusive win at his home track for the last 14 years, saw his hopes dashed once more in the first round of eliminations.

“Dammit,” said Johnson to convey his disappointment before explaining why his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart veered towards to centerline in a loss to Dave Connolly.

“When left the starting line, it was pretty decent in first gear and then it started chattering the left tire and pushing me over there,” Johnson said. “If you make a big correction you kill a lot of e.t. so I was trying to ease it back but never could get it to take hold. Then it made one big move and I was getting ready to relive Gainesville from a few years back (where he had a spectacular accident) if I had stayed in it. I thought, you know what? There’s another race next week.”

In 2012, Johnson missed winning on home turf by less than .0000 of a second against Mike Edwards in the closest race in NHRA history, but went on to win the NHRA Pro Stock championship that season. While he’s hoping that scenario perhaps might repeat itself, this weekend’s loss will still sting.

“It’s going to be sweet to win it one of these days,” Johnson bass. “We’ll keep after it. Next year we’ll work hard at it again and one day it will be our day. Today just wasn’t.”

While Jeg Coughlin Jr., also faltered in a bid to carry the Johnson & Johnson HEMI-powered banner through to the final round, there were still some positives to take away. The JEGS.com Dodge Dart posted low elapsed times in all three rounds against Kenny Delco, Vincent Nobile and even in the semi-final loss against Erica-Enders Stevens which was forfeited with a red light start.

"I let the clutch out and was so focused on getting the car down the lane that I never even saw the red-light,” said Coughlin who failed to make the final round for the first time in four events. “I put the car in fifth gear and had a glance or two to the other lane. We got through the finish line and I never saw any win lights. Sure we hate to give one back, but that's just the way it was made out to be. We'll try harder in Epping [N.H.]."

The third HEMI-powered Dodge Dart entry of V. Gaines bowed out in the first round.

Coughlin takes over the second spot in the Pro Stock points with his Mopar teammate Johnson right behind in third, trailing Sunday’s event winner Enders- Stevens who defeated Jonathon Gray in the final to extend her lead in the points.

Bristol, Tenn. (Saturday, June 14) – Mopar Pro Stock driver Jeg Coughlin Jr. narrowly missed out on snagging the top position on the eliminations ladder for Sunday’s 14th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Thunder Valley Nationals after a great final qualifying run against competitor Shane Gray in which both cars posted identical elapsed time runs but the JEGS.com Dodge Dart was edged out by speed.

With less humidity and water particles in the air than the previous cooler evening, the Johnson & Johnson-tuned HEMI® engine propelled Coughlin’s Mopar to the top of the score sheets on his first pass of the day with a 6.634-second run at 207.85 mph. The JEGS.com Dodge Dart improved again on the final run of the day with a 6.621-second e.t, but saw Gray match it to earn his first career No.1 qualifier position with a speed of 208.78 mph to Coughlin’s 208.62 mph.

"I know it's happened in my career; I don't think it's happened for No. 1 – probably not, I would say," said Coughlin of losing the pole position on speed after a matching elapsed time pass. "That's probably another first. We had a heck of a car all through qualifying. We ran two real nice runs yesterday and ran second and third in the sessions yesterday. Today, we were first and second. We made small improvements coming in today, and the air was a bit dryer, and the barometric pressure was a little bit up. That's why the Pro Stock cars were picking up in elapsed time and speed. The track stayed really, really good for as hot as that sun was on it, and the crew chiefs were able to apply quite a bit to it.”

Coughlin’s gained eight bonus points with his runs and his second place seeding will match him up against Kenny Delco in the first round of eliminations.

Teammate and crowd favorite Allen Johnson also improved his qualifying time from Friday’s sessions in the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart, but ended up fifth with his best run of 6.636 seconds (207.85 mph). The Greeneville, Tenn.-native is not only hoping to continue the streak of wins that he and Coughlin have combine to put together in the last three nationals events, but is looking to earn his first win at his home track.

“We snuck into that top-five position at the end and made a good run for Sunday but we’ve been a bit quiet,” said Johnson who will see Dave Connolly as his first round competitor. “Jeg (Coughlin)’s showing off more than we are but that’s our set up too so that means we should be good. That last run will be the conditions we should have tomorrow almost exactly so that was a good run. Everyone’s grouped together real tight and Pro Stock competition is as tight as it has ever been. All the pressure is on me just so long as the car makes that same run and I have a great run, we have a great combination.”

The HEMI-powered Dodge Dart of V. Gaines qualified 13th with a 6.690-second e.t. (206.73 mph) to face Jason Line in the first round.

Bristol, Tenn. (Friday, June 13) – The 14th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Thunder Valley Nationals hold a bit more importance than usual for a few Mopar drivers this weekend. Since the national event was added to the NHRA Mello Yello drag racing schedule, there has been extra incentive to do well as a home event for the Greenville, Tenn.-native Allen Johnson and his engine builder, Roy Johnson, but the father-son duo have some unfinished business they’d like to take care of this Father’s Day weekend in the new Dodge Dart.

While both the elder and younger Johnson have previously won sportsman races at Bristol Dragway as drivers — Roy did it twice in the early 1970s in Stock and Super Stock classes, while Allen won as a teen in 1981 in Super Stock— a Pro Stock win has eluded them. In 2012, on route to their first NHRA Pro Stock World Championship, they came as close to a win as is technically possible with the closest finish in NHRA history when Johnson’s Mopar finished runner-up to competitor Mike Edwards by less than .0000 of a second. Johnson earned three consecutive pole positions from 2010 to 2012 and added a No.2 qualifier position last season. With three wins so far this year, two of which have been in the new Dodge Dart, Johnson is hoping to add another this weekend.

“This is the year,” said Johnson who wrapped up the first two qualifying sessions on Friday evening by putting the Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar Dodge Dart provisionally second with a best elapsed time run of 6.657 seconds and speed of 207.37 mph. “The first run was a little conservative and the second one we got after it and had a little left. We’ve been close to a win here before but I’m feeling pretty confident with a good test here last week and with the Mopar team riding a good streak right now. It took some work to figure out the new car but we’re seeing great progress. We’ve got a great product. We’ve got the tools. We just have to go out and do it on Sunday.

“It’s no ordinary race for us. We appreciate being able to have the people who support me and this team here to let them have a little fun and give them a good show this weekend. That’s what this race is about. A win would be great for them but I really want to do it worse for my dad because it is Father’s Day. A win would make it special and a day neither of us will ever forget.”

Fellow Johnson & Johnson HEMI-powered teammate and defending world champion Jeg Coughlin Jr., earned a Pro Stock win at the Thunder Valley Nationals in 2007 and comes into this weekend’s competition riding a streak of three consecutive final round appearances in Atlanta, Topeka, and Englishtown, including a pair of wins, that propelled him from ninth to second place in the Pro Stock rankings, tying him in points with Johnson. They both trail points leader Erica Enders-Stevens by 123 markers. Strangely enough, following this event last year, the Mopar teammates were also tied for second in points.

Coughlin is right behind Johnson in third place on the qualifying time sheets with an identical e.t of 6.657-seconds but with a best speed of 206.64 mph.

"This race will be a fun one for all of us as the guys will be close to home, so we'll have lots of family and friends with us,” said Coughlin who would like to keep the win streak alive in front of the Johnson & Johnson team’s home crowd. “That always makes it special, and of course you want to show off a little if you can. It won't be easy -- it never is -- but we'll be as prepared as possible to have a good weekend."

Englishtown, New Jersey (Monday, June 2) – Jeg Coughlin Jr. drove the JEGS.com Mopar Dodge Dart to victory at the 45th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Summernationals in Englishtown, New Jersey, to earn his 58th career Pro Stock national title after reaching the final round of eliminations for a third consecutive event. The defending NHRA factory hot rod world champion has been on a tear, jumping from ninth place in the points standings to second with his two wins and a runner-up finish, combining with his teammate, Allen Johnson, to put the new Dodge Dart in the winner’s circle at each of the last three events.

"These last three weekends have been a helluva hat trick for J&J Racing, winning all three races,” said Coughlin who earned both his wins this season against Greg Anderson in the final round, this time with an elapsed time run of 6.510 seconds (213.94 mph). “I got Atlanta and Englishtown and A.J. won in Topeka, so we're on a great run."

“Congratulations to Jeg Coughlin Jr. on his drive to the winner’s circle at the Summernationals to continue this fantastic streak of wins for the Dodge Dart and his second of the year.” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group’s service, parts and customer-care brand. “A third consecutive win for the Dodge Dart definitely helps validate all the hard work that the Mopar teams have put in with the new vehicle. We look forward to seeing what more Jeg and Allen can do with HEMI and new Dodge Dart combination in such a competitive Pro Stock field.”

The win was hard fought after only five of the 16 Pro Stock qualifiers completed runs under full power in the opening round. Track conditions even claimed Mopar teammate and No.1 qualifier Johnson as a victim in his first round match-up against Chris McGaha, after previously resetting the track record two days in a row in qualifying with the Magneti Marelli Dodge Dart at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park. Fellow HEMI-powered driver V.Gaines also succumbed in the first round against Shane Gray. Coughlin also wasn’t able to make a clean run but persevered to beat his first round opponent Kenny Delco to the stripe.

"That was a scare," Coughlin said. "Kenny's a hometown hero and I know they wanted to win. The track just wasn't there and neither of us managed to launch correctly. It was some violent shake and I had to let the car settle before I was able to get back on the gas and get down the track. Those moments seem to last forever.

“The guys worked on it, softened the launch sequence a touch, and we came back and ran a decent 6.586 against Shane Gray,” Coughlin added. “We worked on it some more and really had a pass against Dave Connolly in a great side-by-side race (6.524 to 6.535 second e.t.) and that got us to the final. We had the kind of conditions that Pro Stock cars love today with a great barometer and not a cloud in the sky but you had to work for it.”

Mopar teammates Coughlin and Johnson are currently tied for second (668) in the Pro Stock points race and have combined for five national titles for Mopar this season to date.

Englishtown, New Jersey (Saturday, May 31) – Picking up right where he left off last weekend with his Pro Stock title win at the Kansas Nationals, Allen Johnson drove his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart to the top spot on both qualifying days at the 45th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Summernationals to earn his 33rd career No.1 qualifier position.

With cool evening conditions on Friday, Johnson drove his HEMI®-powered Mopar to the provisional pole position by setting the track elapsed time record at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park with a 6.502 second / 213.00 mph pass. He followed up that performance by improving on it in the final session on Saturday with the second quickest pass in Pro Stock history to take his second No.1 qualifier honor of the season.

“This track is absolutely awesome when you have cloud cover and cool conditions especially that left lane so when we saw it coming, we went back and reset the car on kill and it worked,” said Johnson of his quickest career pass of 6.472 seconds (214.35 mph). “Right before our run, Erica (Enders-Stevens) and her crew chief told me not to do anything heroic and throw them a bone and I said “Nope”. It was exciting to go out and grab it from them. I’ve got a great crew and Jeg (Coughlin Jr.) is right there behind me and we have a good combination going into race day.”

Johnson, who finished runner-up last year at the Summernationals, will face Chris McGaha as his first round opponent in eliminations.

Mopar teammate and reigning champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. heads into elimination in sixth spot after posting a win and a runner-up finish in consecutive national events leading up to this weekend’s competition.

Coughlin posted his second best career e.t. run of 6.489-second (214.25 mph) in the JEGS.com Dodge Dart in Saturday's early session to match-up against Kenny Delco in the opening round.

"We're in the top half, and that's what matters the most," said Coughlin, who earned the win in Atlanta from the eighth spot on the eliminations ladder. "I think the left lane here is slightly better because it's smoother and seems to have better traction from 60 feet to around 400 feet, which is an important area for Pro Stock cars."

While the debut of the new Dodge Dart Pro Stock was celebrated with a win by Johnson at the Gatornationals in March, it took the HEMI-powered two–car Mopar team a few more events to get a good handle on the new combination. Their hard work, however, has most recently been rewarded with three consecutive final round appearances and two victories, including the all-Mopar final elimination showdown between the teammates last week in Topeka, which they are hoping to repeat on Sunday.

Fellow HEMI-powered Dodge Dart driver, V.Gaines qualified 14th with a 7.583-second e.t. and will face Shane Gray as his first round opponent.

Auburn Hills, Mich. (Sunday, May 25) – “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart driver Allen Johnson raced to his second victory in three years and third straight final-round appearance at the NHRA Kansas Nationals, defeating teammate Jeg Coughlin Jr. in a repeat of last year’s all-Mopar final at Heartland Park Topeka. Flipping the results from his runner-up finish against Coughlin at the venue in 2013, Johnson drove to his class-leading third victory of the season, third overall at Topeka and 23rd of his career.

Following on the heels of Coughlin’s win in the rain-delayed NHRA Atlanta event on Monday, Johnson’s triumph is the second in less than a week for Mopar Dodge Dart drivers, and third overall since Johnson inaugurated the new Mopar Dodge Dart Pro Stock body with a win in its race debut at the NHRA Gatornationals in March. Counting Johnson’s victory at Phoenix in his since retired Dodge Avenger, Mopar Pro Stockers have accounted for four wins in the eight 2014 NHRA events held to date.

“It is fantastic to see Allen Johnson take the new Magneti Marelli Dodge Dart to the Kansas Nationals winner’s circle for his third win this season,” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group’s service, parts and customer-care brand. “There really is no better way to validate all the hard work that he and his team have put in combined with the work of our Mopar engineers. It’s a great way to get the season rolling and we look forward to seeing what more Allen and this new Dodge Dart can continue to do in such a competitive Pro Stock field.”

Johnson, who moved up to second in the Pro Stock standings with his win, used a 6.676 elapsed time at 206.95 mph to defeat Larry Morgan to begin eliminations and a 6.637/207.21 to best Shane Gray in the quarterfinals. Johnson’s quick reflexes proved the difference against points leader Erica Enders-Stevens in the semis. The pair posted near identical runs, Johnson with a 6.657/206.32 and Enders-Stevens with a matching 6.657 ET but faster speed of 206.51 mph. Johnson took the holeshot win with a quicker .022 reaction time to his opponent’s .046 to set up an all-Mopar showdown with Coughlin, who also competes with Mopar HEMI engines supplied by Johnson & Johnson Racing.

Coughlin, hot off his Atlanta victory, dispatched Rodger Brogdon, Dave Connolly and Vincent Nobile to reach the money round. Johnson, the overall 2012 Pro Stock series champ, was once again first out of the gate with a .028 to the .048 posted by Coughlin, the defending series champ, in his Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Dart. Johnson never trailed, recording a 6.663/207.18 mark to Coughlin’s 6.664/207.05 to earn his third Topeka Wally trophy, following victories in 2009 and 2012.

“What a great relief when you get to the final with your teammate,” said Johnson, who combined with his 2010 runner-up at Topeka now has five final appearances in the last six years at the venue. “You feel like you’ve won either way. Any time I’m in a final with Jeg it raises my IQ about 50 points, because he’s that good. It makes me want to be better to race him and gets me up for the challenge.

“We’ve been struggling just a little bit. We finally got a handle on Jeggy’s car at the last race, and in the second round today we got a handle on mine. This team just keeps battling. It doesn’t matter what it is, every single run we’re just attacking the car, and that’s just the way this team is. To have half the wins this year (in the class) in our camp is a pretty good feeling.”

With his runner-up spot, Coughlin moved to fourth in the Pro Stock standings. Dodge Dart driver V. Gaines, who took out Greg Anderson before falling to Enders-Stevens in the quarterfinals, is eighth in points.

Auburn Hills, Mich. (Saturday, May 24) – Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Dart driver Jeg Coughlin Jr. will look to keep a pair of streaks alive when he starts from the No. 4 spot in eliminations tomorrow at the NHRA Kansas Nationals at Heartland Park Topeka. Coughlin will seek to defend his 2013 event win at Topeka, and will also attempt to double up following his victory earlier this week in the rain-delayed NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing event in Atlanta.

Inclement weather also played a role in Friday qualifying at Topeka, with the Pro categories limited to just one qualifying attempt. Coughlin made the most of that single session, recording his quickest qualifying effort with a 6.618-second elapsed time, at 208.65 mph. After more wet weather, the defending Pro Stock series champ added runs of 6.627/207.53 and 6.624/207.53 in his final two qualifying attempts on Saturday. Coughlin draws Rodger Brogdon to begin eliminations tomorrow.

"Coming off a hot win in Atlanta was amazing," Coughlin said. "The timing of that win was great. We struggled a little bit through qualifying there, and this week has been a bit of a flip from that. We've been real consistent through qualifying."

Allen Johnson, Coughlin’s Johnson & Johnson Racing stable mate, saved the best for last, driving his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” to its quickest qualifying run of the weekend on his final attempt with a 6.620 ET to move up to the sixth position. Johnson will face Larry Morgan in round one tomorrow. Fellow Dodge Dart pilot V. Gaines earned the seventh slot on the starting grid thanks to a 6.621 run and meets Greg Anderson in the opening round.

“We got our best run of the weekend on the last pass today, so that’s encouraging,” said Johnson, the 2012 Topeka event champ. “With Jeg in the top half at No. 4, and V. as well, we’ve got a great chance to keep the Topeka trophy in the Mopar camp.”

Commerce, Georgia (Monday, May 18) – After winning the 2013 National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Pro Stock Championship, Jeg Coughlin Jr. was back in the winner’s circle for his first win of the 2014 Mello Yello Drag Racing series season aboard the Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Dart at the rain delayed 34th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals near Atlanta, Georgia, on Monday.

The victory at Atlanta Dragway was the 57th of Coughlin’s illustrious Pro Stock career and the second for the Dodge Dart, which made its debut earlier this season at Gainesville with a win by Johnson & Johnson (J&J) HEMI®-powered teammate Allen Johnson.

“Congratulations to Jeg Coughlin Jr. on taking Mopar to the winner’s circle in Atlanta for his first win of the year and a second win for the new Dodge Dart.” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group’s service, parts and customer-care brand. “After earning consecutive NHRA Pro Stock world titles in 2012 and 2013, our Mopar championship drivers Allen (Johnson) and Jeg (Coughlin Jr.) have set expectations even higher for this new season. We’re excited for this win as it also helps celebrate the 50th anniversary of the legendary 426 race HEMI engine while we work to defend our championships this year amid some very tough competition.”

Coughlin earned the win by defeating rival Greg Anderson following stellar 0.010 and 0.002-second reaction times by both competitors. The HEMI engine powered the five-time champion to a 6.558-second elapsed time run (211.63 mph) to edge his opponent’s 6.588-second e.t (212.13 mph) for half a car-length advantage at the finish line.

“Winning the championship was fantastic, and we really felt like we had a ton of momentum coming into 2014," Coughlin said. "We’ve been hit and miss a little this year with both cars, and both cars were a little sluggish here at the start. Our teams did one heck of a job to rebound this weekend. We made some good calls, and it was great to get our first win of the season.

“This year we’ve been through some pitfalls and we wanted to pull our hair out, but as a team we said we need to be patient, we need to double-check each other, and we need to do as good a job as we can getting this car to go straight and be as efficient as it can, and results like today would have the opportunity to happen."

The national event was plagued by intermittent weather delays, included an eight hour wait on Sunday, and despite efforts to overcome difficult track conditions caused by the rain, led to the eventual postponement of activities to the following day. The challenges amplified by the ever-changing track conditions became the canvas for some difficult and sometimes dramatic attempts throughout the weekend to make it down the track unscathed by Mopar drivers in both Pro Stock and Funny Car categories.

Coughlin’s drive to the winner’s circle was the one redeeming moment of the extended weekend for Mopar after some atypical qualifying passes by both the Mopar/JEGS.com and “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart entries put them eighth and ninth respectively on the eliminations ladder. That put the teammates in the unfortunate position of not only facing each other in the opening round, but also being the first pair to put the rain battered track to the test.

“We put ourselves in that position by qualifying badly,” said Johnson whose disappointment with his loss and the difficulties both drivers encountered throughout the weekend was tempered upon seeing improvement with Coughlin’s Dodge Dart in the quarterfinals upset of No.1 qualifier Erica Enders-Stevens.

“The conditions leading up to eliminations were just not very compatible with our new motor combination, but the track finally to us and we kept thrashing at it after each run,” Johnson said. “We have a veteran team that just keeps digging no matter what. I kept telling Jeg ‘We’ll get it. We’ll get it.’ and we did and it worked out and we have something to start with next weekend in Topeka.”

The difficult track conditions claimed V. Gaines and his HEMI-powered Dodge Dart as victims with loss of traction in the first round battle against Rodger Brogden.

Commerce, Georgia (Saturday, May 17) – The elimination ladders are set for the 34th annual Summit Racing Equipment National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Southern Nationals near Atlanta, Georgia, and for nearly every Mopar entry, qualifying presented a bigger challenge than expected and produced either a somewhat positive or rather unusual result. Intermittent rain delays on both qualifying days pushed the sessions later into the evening than normal and into cooler and slightly better racing conditions under the lights at Atlanta Dragway.

In Pro Stock qualifying, the Mopars of Allen Johnson and Jeg Coughlin Jr. had much less dramatic runs. In fact, lackluster would be a better word to describe them according to both drivers.

"Everything's here, it's in one piece, and we've got something to work with for tomorrow but it’s been a bizarre four runs for both of us, “ said defending NHRA Pro Stock champion, Jeg Coughlin, who usually prefers to focus on the positives as they prepare for race day.

However, after what can be categorized as a difficult weekend thus far for both Dodge Dart entries, Coughlin acknowledges that qualifying eighth with a 6.537 second (211.79 mph) and seeing Johnson ninth 6.540 seconds (211.26 mph) to face off in the first round is not what either was expecting from their weekend at the Southern Nationals.

“We’ve got cars that are typically in the top-five anywhere we go, but boy we tripped over our own laces several times this weekend. It’s just been odd. We’ll go into game day guns blazing and there’s no question that I have all faith in the world that our teams will get our cars running the way they should. It’s unfortunate that we have to square-off against one another but if you look at the positive side of that, one of us is going to move on to the next round and hopefully we’ll have it figured out and not look back.”

His teammate, Johnson, found it a little more difficult to hide his frustration with the result of his qualifying runs in the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart.

“We are five-hundredths of a second off the fastest car here when at the last event in Houston we were the fastest or right with the fastest car,” said Johnson. “We haven’t changed anything drastic and here we are in the middle of the pack and we’re not exactly sure why. We’ve got a bug that we can’t get rid of and it’s affecting both cars. We’re a bit lost right now but we have a veteran crew that working hard at it and will put their heads together to get our Dodge Dart cars working like we know they should. .”

The third Dodge Dart qualified for elimination rounds is that of V. Gaines who sits 12th with an e.t of 6.547 sec. (212.56 mph) and will face Rodger Brogden as his first opponent on Sunday.

Pole positions in each category were awarded to Pro Stock driver Erica Enders-Stevens who qualified with a track record 6.493 second e.t at 212.69 mph.

Commerce, Georgia (Friday, May 16) – Following a two week break from National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) drag racing action, Mopar teams are back on track at the 34th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals near Atlanta, Georgia. Coming off final elimination appearances at the SpringNationals in both Pro Stock, with Allen Johnson, and Funny Car, with Jack Beckman, Mopar teams and drivers are now looking to get on a roll starting this weekend at Atlanta Dragway for the first of three national events in as many weeks.

For Friday’s two qualifying sessions, the track that normally boasts a “Hot-lanta” moniker saw cool temperatures in the 60 degree Fahrenheit range set up the opportunity for quicker lap times, but instead the Mopar contingent saw mixed results in both categories.

Aboard the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart Pro Stock, Johnson, who has one win at this event earned in 2002, improved his time with his second qualifying run to move into the provisional fifth spot with a 6.541 second pass (211.83 mph).

V. Gaines also had a good second pass aboard his new Pro Stock Dodge Dart, which he premiered at the last event in Houston, to move up the ladder into eighth place with a 6.555 second (211.96 mph) run.

Jeg Coughlin Jr., who has won twice at Atlanta (2000 and 2010), saw his JEGS.com Mopar make a sudden move toward the wall on his second run and sits in the 10th spot based on his first attempt with a 6.560 second (210.83 mph) elapsed time. Competitor Erica Enders-Stevens holds the provisional pole with her first pass after setting a track record 6.506-second (212.53 mph) low elapsed time run.

Baytown, Texas (Sunday, April 27) – Mopar drivers Allen Johnson and Jack Beckman took their HEMI-powered Dodge machines to their respective Pro Stock and Funny Car final elimination rounds at Royal Purple Raceway to come away with runner-up finishes at 27th annual NHRA SpringNationals near Baytown, Texas.

Pro Stock No.1 qualifier, Johnson took his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart through the eliminations ladder to advance to his third final round appearance of the 2014 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season. He defeated Greg Stanfield, Jonathan Gray and Vincent Nobile on route to a final elimination match-up with the second seeded Eric Enders-Stevens.

While Johnson had a 12-7 career win record against Enders-Stevens and three rounds victories over her this year, it took a hole shot (.018 to .044 reaction time) win to defeat him with a 6.594 second (210.60 mph) to 6.588 second (210.28 mph) elapsed time pass.

However, Johnson can’t help but come away from the weekend feeling positive about the runner-up finish. After consecutive wins at Phoenix and Gainesville national events, the last two race weekends leading up to the team’s arrival in Houston were slightly more challenging as the Johnson & Johnson crew worked to collect data from the two new Dodge Darts and find the consistency needed for success in the hotly contested Pro Stock category this season. The benefits of those trials now seem to be paying dividends both Johnson and teammate Jeg Coughlin Jr.

“We can’t be too disappointed with our weekend,” said Johnson who remains second in the Pro Stock points standings behind Enders-Stevens. “I think we’ve got a better handle on the Dart. We have something really good to work with on both cars and we actually made some good progress today with Jeg (Coughlin Jr.) car. Jeg really made improvements today and had a chance to be in the finals with me. Between the tune up and the motors and this humidity and these new cars we made a lot of positive progress this weekend.

“Erica (Enders-Stevens) was fast all weekend and we were right there with her but today was her day. I feel like we’ll be fighting it out all year long.”

Coughlin’s day started on a positive note as he disposed of opponents Greg Anderson and Dave Connolly with the help of strong reaction times to advance to his semi-final match up against Enders-Stevens where, for a second consecutive national event, the JEGS.com Mopar driver had a -.004 red-light foul ruin his bid for a final round appearance.

"I felt fantastic behind the wheel," Coughlin said. "I was .005 first round and .012 second round, and I was set up somewhere between .002 and .010 for that run and must've got it all again. Little bit unnecessary, quite frankly, to set up so tight but we'll make some adjustments. We've got two weeks off, so we'll be ready to go for Atlanta."

Coughlin’s semi-final appearance contributed to boosting the defending NHRA Pro Stock Champ from ninth to seventh in the standings.

After starting the season with a pair of runner-up finished, V. Gaines didn’t quite have the kind of debut the team had hoped for their new HEMI-powered Dodge Dart. Gaines saw his day end prematurely with a loss in the opening round to Jonathan Gray who beat him on a hole shot with a 0.014 to 0.075 second reaction time and 6.645 (209.82 mph) to 6.642 (211.06 mph) elapsed time run.

Baytown, Texas (Saturday, April 26) – It was a happy “HEMI Day” for Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson who kept his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart atop the leaderboard at Royal Purple Raceway to secure the No.1 qualifier position for Sunday’s elimination rounds at 27th annual NHRA SpringNationals near Baytown, Texas. In tribute to the Gen II 426 Race HEMI, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this season, Mopar and aficionados of the iconic engine have designated April 26 (4-26) as “HEMI Day”.

Johnson secured his first pole position of the 2014 season, the 32nd of his career, with his second qualifying pass in the cool Friday evening air by posting a 6.555-second elapsed time run at 211.63 mph. The Mopar driver also earned a total of nine qualifying bonus point by posting the second quickest passes in three other sessions. His closest qualifying rival in the hotly contested Pro Stock category was second seeded Erica Enders Stevens.

“Our Magneti Marelli Dodge Dart and Erica’s car, we both made good runs today, and we’re pretty nip and tuck,” said Johnson who is chasing his first win at the Houston track and a third this season. “We’re No. 1 and 2, and hopefully we can make it to the final. Right now, we both separated ourselves a little bit from the field, which is pretty uncommon. The top ten cars that last few races have been just tied together.”

Johnson will see Greg Stanfield as his first round opponent.

With more humid conditions for the final two qualifying laps on Saturday, it was difficult to improve on times posted the previous evening. As a result, Mopar teammate Jeg Coughlin Jr. will start from the sixth position on the eliminations ladder based on the 6.592 e.t. (210.47 mph) he posted on his second pass. Coughlin will line up against Greg Anderson in the opening round of the SpringNationals.

V. Gaines premiered his new Dodge Dart with four good qualifying runs, improving steadily to put it ninth on the score sheets with a 6.597 sec / 210.31 mph effort for a first round match-up against Jonathan Gray.

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Provisional No.1 Qualifier by Johnson Bolsters Mopar at NHRA SpringNationals in Houston.

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Concord, N.C. (Sunday, April 13) – Rather than a berth in the final elimination round and a shot at a coveted title win at the fifth annual Four-Wide NHRA Nationals, each Mopar Funny Car and Pro Stock team and driver left the event with good dose of frustration after none of the Dodge entries advanced past the semifinals.

As the only national event on the National Hot Rod Association circuit with four cars battling each other at the same time on the purposely-built zMax Dragway at Charlotte Motor Speedway, just three heats are necessary to determine the title winner, runner-up and two semi-finalists, leaving little room for error.

The Four-Wide format proved to be a challenge to Mopar’s Pro Stock contingent as well, as all three HEMI-powered Dodge entries had their elimination rounds end in frustrations with none making it past the second wave of eliminations.

The first round results looked promising for Jeg Coughlin Jr. who was right on target with his JEGS.com Dodge Dart taking it to the stripe first, posting a 0.600-second reaction time to run an elapsed time pass of 6.681 seconds (210.28 mph), to beat Shane Gray’s (0.784 sec. reaction) 6.566 second e.t. (211.69 mph), with both drivers advancing to the next heat over Robert Patrick and Rodger Brogden.

Winner of two national title events thus far this year, Allen Johnson (0.037-second reaction) ran his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart to a 6.554-second e.t. (211.46 mph) crossing the finish second to Erica Enders-Stevens’ (0.020 reaction) 6.546 second (212.33 mph) in their first round foursome, leaving John Gaydosh and Jonathon Gray behind. In the last first-round quartet match-up, the Dodge Avenger of V. Gaines saw its day shortened with a third place finish.

The next round of eliminations for the J&J HEMI-powered Mopars of Johnson and Coughlin didn’t start or end the way they had hoped. Johnson’s hopes of participating in his first Four-Wide final round appearance ended when his tires shook in a match-up against Enders-Stevens, Jason Line and Vincent Nobile.

For his part, Coughlin was just 0.005-seconds too quick for a rare red-light start that disqualified what would have been the quickest pass of the round at 6.542 seconds and 211.63 mph against Jimmy Alund, Shane Gray and Chris McGaha. The final elimination round featured a first career NHRA Pro Stock win for Alund, Gray finishing runner-up, with Nobile and Enders-Stevens as semifinalist.

Concord, N.C. (Saturday, April 12) – Leading the Mopar Pro Stockers in qualifying is reigning world champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. who qualified fifth on the merit of his 6.538 seconds (212.13 mph) pass on Friday. Coughlin won at the Charlotte track last September on his way to his 2013 Championship and would like to add a Four-Wide win to his list of accomplishments.

"Winning here in the Fall gives us a pep in our step, and we want to keep that streak alive tomorrow,” said Coughlin. “It would be great if we can get both Allen (Johnson) and my car into that final foursome and see if one of us can't walk away with the victory. It's such a special and unique deal that you almost rank it up there with Indy (U.S. Nationals) or the Gators (Gainesville). It has a certain prestige to it even though it's still a fairly new deal for modern-day drag racing.

"Running well today was good because this will most likely be the exact same conditions we'll have tomorrow,” added Coughlin, who also posted the second quickest run of the final session. “Both of these Dodge Darts coming out of the J&J Racing camp are looking sporty.”

Coughlin will line up his JEGS.com Mopar against Shane Gray (4), Robert Patrick (13) and Rodger Brogdon (12) in his quad for the first round of eliminations,

Winner of two national title events thus far this year and sitting third in the Pro Stock standings is Allen Johnson who qualified the Magneti Marelli Dodge Dart in seventh spot to do battle against Erica Enders Steven (2), John Gaydosh (15) and Jonathon Gray (10) in his heat. V. Gaines, who sits fourth right behind Johnson in the points, qualified his HEMI-powered Dodge Avenger 11th and will line up against No.1 qualifier Chris McGaha, Larry Morgan (16) and Jimmy Alund (8).

Concord, N.C. (Friday, April 11) – The unique Four-Wide Nationals present a different kind of test for the Mopar contingent competing at this weekend’s National Hot Rod Association Drag Racing series event near Charlotte, N.C., at the specially built zMAX Dragway. While the unique event provides double the excitement for spectators, competitors have to contend with the uncommon challenges that the four-car showdown format presents. However, it isn’t just bragging rights on the line, as each Mopar pilot has a different reason for wanting to come away with a title win this weekend.

For teammates, Allen Johnson and Jeg Coughlin Jr., putting the new Dodge Dart back in the winner’s circle after its debut win at the Gatornationals isn’t just a matter of pride but a necessity to stay as close to the top of the hotly contested Pro Stock points standings as possible this season. The quad-style battle in both qualifying and elimination rounds, rather than the usual head-to-head competition, adds another unique element to help mix things up in the very competitive hot rod category this season.

“This event is all about focus,” said Johnson who is third in the championship points with two wins already this season. “It’s a challenge to not get distracted or get caught looking at the wrong tree, and it’s just a lot different from any other race for both drivers and fans. There is a lot going on at the same time. We also need to keep focus on getting those points. They are going to be so important this year with such a competitive field where anyone can win each and every time out there. It’s just that close.”

“I’m not satisfied at all with how our Friday went to be honest,” added Johnson, whose best run of 6.546 seconds (212.46 mph) put him seventh on the ladder after two qualifying runs. “We tested this week at Rockingham and thought we’d really set the place on fire with the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” machine, and couldn’t have been more stoked to come here this weekend. But our first two runs here today sure were humbling.”

Coughlin, for his part, found himself fifth in qualifying with an elapsed time run of 6.538 seconds (212.13 mph) and looking to improve on Saturday to try to repeat the No.1 qualifier position he earned at the inaugural NHRA Four-Wide Nationals in 2010.

V. Gaines was ninth with his best qualifying e.t. of 6.560 seconds (212.63 mph) and is also looking for a shot at retiring his HEMI-powered Dodge Avenger with a win at Charlotte before premiering his own Dodge Dart in the coming weeks.

Las Vegas (Sunday, March 30) – Mopar-powered teams and drivers are hoping the popular adage “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” holds true as they expect to leave the disappointing results behind them as they depart Las Vegas following Sunday’s SummitRacing.com National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals event. Not a single Dodge entry was able to make their way past the semi-final rounds in what proved to be an unusual race day at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Pro Stock class competition was rightfully delayed for hours by NHRA officials amid safety concerns due to strong cross winds and gusts over 25 miles per hour that combined with the desert environment to blanket a layer of dust and debris over the track, proving problematic for the low-downforce factory hot rods.

Once racing resumed, No.1 qualifier Jeg Coughlin Jr. (6.697 second / 207.88 mph) drove his JEGS.com Dodge Dart to a first round win over Mark Wolfe and lane choice for the next match-up. Things didn’t go quite as planned in the quarterfinals, where it took a holeshot by Jimmy Alund (0.024 sec. reaction time) to beat Coughlin’s (0.062 sec.) Mopar which posted a 6.653-second elapsed time pass to his competitor’s 6.689-second run.

“We're going to win a lot of races by a few thousandths, and if we get eliminated it's probably going to be a thousandth of a second because that's how tight things are right now,” said Coughlin who was just 0.0028 seconds short of advancing to the semifinals. “We had a good car, and we were pretty fast on Friday and pretty fast on Saturday. Coming into Sunday, we had another element of change with the car's setup. The last 400 feet that crosswind was really trying to push it hard, and I had the wheel turned a pretty good ways, more than I anticipated. We'll get it cleaned up and be ready for the next go."

Seeded sixth, Allen Johnson saw hopes of defending his Vegas title and earning a third consecutive win this season disappear with the gust of wind that blew debris into the engine, diminishing the horsepower needed to make it to the next round. Johnson had a 0.070-second reaction time to Steve Kent’s 0.089 but posted a 6.782-second / 207.43 mph pass to his opponent’s 6.673 / 206.54.

“During the burnout something went through the carburetor and closed up the gap on the spark plug, so when I staged it, then dropped the clutch, it was only on seven cylinders all the way through first gear,” said Johnson about the loss of power he felt on the launch that made all the difference. “In the middle of second gear, it came back to life so I guess the plug had enough heat in it and no load so that it ran better the rest of the way down the track. There was so much dirt on track in the first round that we had no downforce and the cars just danced around on the track. The wind would then upset the car even more when you were unstable to begin with. We got bit, but we’ll load up and try again in Charlotte.”

The HEMI-powered Mopar of V.Gaines, which came into the event second in the points standing behind Johnson, saw his day come to a premature end as well with a loss in the first round to Shane Gray.

The Pro Stock event title went to Erica Enders-Stevens who doubled up on her winnings, much like Johnson had the previous year for Mopar, by also earning the victory in Saturday’s K&N Horsepower Challenge. She also takes over the points lead from Johnson who drops to third place in the standings after four national events.

Las Vegas (Saturday, March 29) – Mopar driver Jeg Coughlin Jr. put the brand new Dodge Dart atop the Pro Stock elimination ladder at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for Sunday’s SummitRacing.com National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals event. It is his 20th career No.1 qualifier position but the first of the 2014 season and a very first for the Dodge Dart which marked its debut at the previous event—the Gatornationals— with a title victory by Mopar teammate Allen Johnson. The new Dodge Dart now has both a win and a No.1 qualifier in its first two events.

The JEGS.com HEMI-powered machine earned the pole position with a low elapsed time pass of 6.625 seconds (208.78 mph) in the Friday’s second qualifying run, a time that held up in the final two sessions.

“We're really proud to hold on to the No. 1 position because it really shows quite a bit about our team,” said Coughlin who has five wins at the Las Vegas track and is looking for post his first win of the season on Sunday. “We’ve been hustling a lot the last month and a half, getting the new cars ready and starting the new season. We’ve had a great start to the new year with Allen (Johnson) winning two of the first three races and we had a great ride today.

"We were really happy with the results and the performance of the car so we'll tuck that in our hat and get ready for tomorrow,” added Coughlin who will have Mark Wolf as his opponent in the first round of eliminations. “We're really happy with the cars. Both Allen's and mine have run really well, and to be No. 1 is great."

While Mopar teams used the two Saturday qualifying sessions to prepare their rides for eliminations, much of the focus was initially centered on the yearly race-within-a race bonus event called the K&N Horsepower Challenge. All three Mopar Pro Stock drivers were part of the eight-racer field eight battling for a lucrative payday in the challenge with the winner taking home $50,000, and the runner-up earning $10,000.

Coughlin, a three-time winner of the bonus event, was the sole Mopar to make it out the first round with a win over Vincent Nobile who defaulted on his start. The JEGS.com Mopar driver went on to face Erica Enders-Stevens, but while he had the lower elapsed time of 6.642 seconds (208.88 mph) he fell short by nine thousands of a second—beaten on a holeshot by the eventual winner of the K&N Horsepower Challenge.

Allen Johnson, No.1 seed for the challenge, saw his hope for a repeat of last year’s win come to an end with a first round holeshot loss to Dave Connolly, who was voted into the competition by a fan vote. Connolly (6.648 sec / 208.07 mph) got a better start with 0.010-second reaction time to Johnson’s 0.029 (6.643 /208.23) to eliminate the “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart from earning the lucrative jackpot for a third time. For Sunday’s eliminations, the defending winner of the national event qualified sixth (6.632/208.94) and will have Steve Kent in the lane next to him for the opening round.

Also eliminated from the challenge early was fellow Mopar driver V. Gaines (6.657 / 208.33) by Enders-Stevens (6.642 / 208.42). The HEMI-powered driver, who already has two runner-up performances this year in the Dodge Avenger to put him second in the Pro Stock standings, ended up 10th with his best qualifying run of 6.657 sec / 209.07mph and will see Shane Gray in the first round.

Gainesville, Fla. (Sunday, March 16) —Allen Johnson had boldly predicted that the new Mopar Dodge Dart NHRA Pro Stock car will ultimately rank among the greatest to compete in the class — and it looks like the Team Mopar veteran might have a bright future as a prognosticator. In the vehicle’s competition debut Johnson wasted no time in igniting a winning legacy for the Dodge Dart, powering to a history-making event win at the 45th Annual NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla.

Johnson also captured his second consecutive NHRA Gatornationals crown and his 22nd career win in 47 final-round appearances en route to become the first Pro Stocker to drive a Dodge Dart into Victory Lane. The win is also the Greeneville, Tenn., native’s second in a row this this season —Johnson raced his Dodge Avenger to a farewell victory at the recent NHRA Phoenix event before christening the Dodge Dart in triumphant style.

“Congratulations to Allen Johnson for taking the new Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar Dodge Dart straight to the winner’s circle in its debut to earn the prestigious Gatornationals title,” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group’s service, parts and customer-care brand. “What a fantastic way to demonstrate the quality of Mopar products and team work. To defend his title, earn consecutive wins and take the early lead in the championship points makes us very excited about the future of the Dodge Dart and Allen’s bid for another NHRA Championship amid some strong competition.”

In the maiden race for his Dodge Dart, and the first with “Magneti Marelli Quality Auto Parts Offered by Mopar” as his primary sponsor, Johnson qualified No. 4 and recorded his fastest career run with a speed of 214.04 mph. He navigated a nail-biting route to the semifinals, tracking down rookie Jonathan Gray in the first session of eliminations after Gray recorded a near-perfect reaction time. Johnson used a 6.559 second /211.83 mph run to catch Gray (6.593/209.98) just past the 1,000 ft. mark.

Johnson’s Dodge Dart veered sharply left in the quarterfinals as he fought the machine down the strip, however, opponent Shane Gray encountered even more trouble on his way down the quarter-mile, and Johnson was able to reel in his ride for a winning 7.414/149.88 pass. Johnson showed that the new Dodge Dart is ready for prime time in the semis, unleashing a 6.569/211.79 to knock off top qualifier Dave Connolly (6.583/211.20). In the money round Johnson demonstrated that the driver is just as important as the car, leaving first with a quicker .017-second reaction time to score a holeshot win over Erica Ender-Stevens, despite a 6.566/211.73 pass to her quicker and faster 6.551/211.96.

“What a great job the Mopar engineers, everybody at Chrysler Group, Dodge and SRT did,” said Johnson, the 2012 NHRA Pro Stock champ and 2013 series runner-up. “I just can’t say enough. For the last two weeks since the Phoenix win, it’s been nonstop. My guys haven’t had a day off. It says a tremendous amount about our crew, and the engineering efforts behind it (the Dart).

“Everything to do with the design of the Dart, the engineers took our input and really came up with a great car. To be able to do that (win in its first race) is a huge accomplishment.”

After posting his fastest speed ever (214.62) mile per hour during qualifying in the debut of the Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Dart, defending NHRA Pro Stock series champ and No. 3 starter Jeg Coughlin Jr. bested Rodger Brogdon in the opening round, reaching the finish line first with a 6.550/211.89 paired with a .019 reaction time. Coughlin’s reflexes were even quicker in the quarterfinals, leaving on Vincent Nobile with a .015 reaction time compared to his opponents slower .021. Unfortunately, the 6.591/211.69 pass by Coughlin wasn’t enough to overcome Nobile’s quicker 6.580/210.60 at the stripe.

The Pro Stock points leader entering the NHRA Gatornationals following two runner-up finishes to start the season, V. Gaines slipped to No. 2 after Gainesville. His 6.571/211.79 in his Dodge Avenger (Gaines will take delivery a new Dodge Dart body shortly) couldn’t match the 6.535/212.59 laid down by Enders-Stevens in the quarterfinals. Mopar-powered Dodge driver Matt Hartford drew Connolly in the first-round, where his day ended.

Gainesville, Fla. (Saturday, March 15) —Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Allen Johnson were confident the new Dodge Dart NHRA Pro Stock car would shine in its competition debut, and the pair demonstrated exactly why during qualifying for the 45th Annual NHRA Gatornationals. Coughlin and Johnson powered to career best speeds in their brand-new race cars and will both start in the top half of the field, third and fourth, respectively, as they aim to claim the inaugural win for the Dodge Dart during Sunday elimination rounds in Gainesville, Fla.

The Mopar teammates held their spots from Friday, when defending NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Pro Stock champion Coughlin earned the third position based on a 6.484-second run in the very first qualifying attempt for his Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Dart. Johnson claimed the No. 4 berth in his “Magneti Marelli Quality Auto Parts Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart with a 6.487 pass in Friday’s second session, in which Coughlin also powered to a career-best speed of 214.62 mph.

Although unable to move further up the starting grid during Saturday’s final two sessions, both Dodge Dart entries continued to shine. In the third session, Coughlin and Johnson qualified together in the first-ever side-by-side run of Dodge Dart Pro Stockers. Johnson was quicker and faster with a 6.495-second run at 214.04 mph, a career-best speed, and was second-quickest of the round, banking two bonus points. Teammate Coughlin posted a 6.505/213.77. In his Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar Dart’s final qualifying attempt, Johnson’s 6.506/212.90 was once again second-quickest of the round, while Coughlin remained solid with a 6.516/213.00.

Coughlin will square off with Rodger Brogdon in round one in his quest for a third Gatornationals crown, and seventh finals appearance at the event. Johnson, who on Sunday seeks a repeat of his 2013 Gatornationals victory and also his second-consecutive win of the 2014 season, will meet Johnathan Gray in the opening round.

“I’m so proud of how hard my crew and the Mopar engineers and employees have worked to get this new Dodge Dart not only ready, but competing so strong right out of the gate,” said Johnson. “It’s been a great debut so far, and the only thing that would make it better is to see the two Dodge Dart Pro Stock cars in the final elimination, with a shot at defending my title here. That’s the goal for Sunday.”

V. Gaines (6.518) will start seventh in his points-leading Mopar Dodge Avenger and battle Larry Morgan to begin eliminations as he seeks his third-straight final round appearance of the season. Gaines will take delivery of his new Dodge Dart as well in few weeks. Matt Hartford (6.591) was listed 16th and will line up with No. 1 Qualifier Dave Connolly.

Gainesville, Fla. (Friday, March 14) —Team Mopar drivers Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Allen Johnson launched a historic new chapter in Mopar’s motorsports legacy, racing to the provisional No. 3 and No. 4 qualifying spots, respectively, in the Dodge Dart vehicle’s official competition debut at the NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla.

Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group LLC’s service, parts and customer-care brand, was present for a special on-track reveal for fans and to witness the Dodge Dart Pro Stock car live up to the hype of its much-anticipated debut.

Coughlin, the defending Pro Stock series champion, was out of the gate first with his Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Dart, claiming the provisional No. 3 spot in the car’s maiden run with a 6.484-second pass at 214.01 mph. He remained third after a second-round 6.486/214.62 mark, but made the quickest pass of the session and earned three bonus points. The 214.62 speed marked Coughlin’s career fastest run, and was just short of the 214.69 national MPH record set by Erica Enders-Stevens earlier in qualifying.

“We had a fantastic unveiling before a great crowd, 99 percent of which hadn’t yet seen the new Dodge Dart,” said Coughlin, a five-time Pro Stock champion and two-time Gatornationals winner. “I was excited sitting in the car with the black car cover over top of it and to feel the emotion and the cheers coming from the stands as they pulled those covers off was really cool. It fired me up, and then after the run when I heard that I went 6.48 at over 214 mph I had a grin the width of Florida on my face.

“I was really happy for the team because they’ve had a really long couple of weeks. A lot of effort has gone into getting these cars ready and to follow up that first run with Allen and I topping the second session was a really strong statement. I think we’ve got two really good cars right now. All we need to do is fine tune them for tomorrow.”

Johnson, the 2012 Pro Stock champ, was also on target with his new Magneti Marelli Quality Auto Parts Offered by Mopar Dodge Dart, ending the day just behind his teammate, in the No. 4 spot. Title winner at the recent NHRA Phoenix race, and also the defending Gatornationals event champ, Johnson posted a 6.505/213.98 to take the fifth position.

In his first race with “Magneti Marelli Quality Auto Parts Offered by Mopar” as his primary sponsor, Johnson moved up a spot in his second attempt with a 6.487/213.94, earning two bonus points with the second-quickest pass of the round. Current Pro Stock points leader V. Gaines placed his Mopar-powered Dodge seventh after two rounds with a best effort of 6.518/213.30. Matt Hartford was listed 15th in his Pro Stock Dodge heading into Saturday.

“If we had made the first run like we did the second run, we would have both definitely had a chance at setting the (speed) record,” said Johnson, owner of J&J Racing, which provides the Mopar HEMI engines for both he and teammate Coughlin. “We can only hope that the conditions for Saturday are just as good or better to be able to get another shot at it. I’m very happy with the runs so far. They’re very consistent; we just have to make the right calls.”

The race premiere followed a media unveiling of the Dart at Two Tails Ranch near Gainesville on Thursday, with Gorlier, Johnson, Coughlin, Team Mopar NHRA Funny Car driver Matt Hagan and Luke, an Asian elephant and resident of the ranch, participating. As part of the year-long celebration of the 50th anniversary of the GEN II 426 race HEMI, Mopar also revealed at the media event a special paint scheme on Hagan’s Dodge Charger R/T that includes a tribute to the HEMI “Elephant”, a nickname given to the legendary power plant. Hagan will run the scheme later this year at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals.

Chandler, Ariz. (Sunday, Feb. 23) – It was an all-Mopar Pro Stock final elimination at the NHRA Arizona Nationals with Allen Johnson posting his 21st career win by emerging the victor over V. Gaines at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park. Gaines, despite the runner-up finish, took the lead in the Pro Stock points standings for the first time in his 21-year career after back-to back final round appearances.

In a rematch of their last dual at the 2013 Mopar Mile High Nationals, Johnson earned his second title win at Phoenix (2005) by beating Gaines with a 6.543 second elapsed time run at 212.23 miles per hour.

“I have a great Mopar Express Lane crew that kept digging and wouldn’t give up after we struggled a little early on and got behind in qualifying,” said Johnson who qualifying sixth and rebounded from a first round lost in the season opener at the Winternationals. “Pomona was probably my worst personal performance in 18 years and it p*ssed me off to be honest and I wanted to make it right. I still didn't do my best here as I was responsible for one round-win, and my crew was responsible for the other three.”

“V [Gaines] is a class act and running really good in a Mopar as of late and he’s going to be tough all year long,” added Johnson who jumps into a tie for third place with Vincent Nobile in the points behind Gaines and Jason Line. “I'm only here because we have a great crew. They worked and got it right, and this is a great way to send this Mopar Express Lube Dodge Avenger out on a winning note.”

Not only was the Mopar final round showdown a fitting way to say farewell to the Dodge Avenger which will be retired following this event to make room for a new Pro Stock Dodge premiering at the next NHRA event in three weeks, but it came exactly 50 years after the first introduction of the GEN II 426 Race HEMI with a win by Richard Petty at NASCAR’s 1964 Daytona 500.

“Congratulations to Allen [Johnson] for a great win in Phoenix with the HEMI-powered Dodge Avenger,” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group’s service, parts and customer-care brand. “Allen and the Mopar Express Lane team haven’t stopped working and building on the successes of last two years and have set the bar even higher this season. What better way than to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the legendary 426 race HEMI engine than to drive it to the winner’s circle in defense of our championships amid tough competition this year.”

Defending NHRA Pro Stock Champ Jeg Coughlin Jr didn’t have the weekend he was hoping for in the JEGS.com Mopar and saw it cut short with a first round loss to Dave Connelly.

"We really never got up with it," said Coughlin who falls to eighth in the standings. "We just didn't run well on Friday, and we thought we came around a little bit Saturday but today we just had a little bit more of the same as Friday. We’ll look forward to Gainesville where we're going to pull the tarp off of a brand-new car that all the folks at Mopar, Dodge, and Chrysler are excited to show the world. That's going to be our new breath."

Chandler, Ariz. (Saturday, Feb. 22) – Mopar driver Allen Johnson was third quickest Pro Stock in the first qualifying session of the day with a 6.557-second elapsed time and set the top speed of the event so far at 212.06 mph on that pass.

“It’s been a good weekend so far for the Mopar Express Lane Dodge and we were in the top-three for two of our runs so I think we have something for tomorrow,” said Johnson who remained sixth overall to claim lane choice over his first round opponent Jimmy Alund. “The left lane has some issues but the right lane is good so it’ll be important to keep lane choice through eliminations.”

V. Gaines, who drove his Mopar to a runner-up finisher at the 2014 season opening event in Pomona, improved to eighth with the second quickest run (6.571 sec /210.70 mph) of the final session and will see Rodger Brogden as his first round opponent.

Defending NHRA Pro Stock champ Jeg Coughlin Jr. ran identical 6.578 second elapsed time runs in both Saturday sessions to post the fourth and third quickest runs in each, but remained tenth on the scoreboard to face-off against Dave Connelly.

"The whole team went through a pretty good effort last night and this morning to try to get the car a little bit happier," Coughlin said. "We know we've got power, we know we've got people, and we've got the greatest sponsors. It's all a matter of continuing to uncover it and making it shine on game day."

Phoenix native Matt Hartford qualified his HEMI-powered Dodge in 13th place and will line up next to Erica Enders-Stevens. Chris McGaha retained the top spot to earn No.1 Qualifier.

Chandler, Ariz. (Friday, Feb. 21) – Mopar teams and drivers had their first qualifying runs Friday afternoon at the newly renovated Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park for the Arizona Nationals, the second event on the 2014 National Hot Rod Association Mello Yello Drag Racing series schedule, and the changes to the track presented a new challenge for all competitors.

“They've made quite a bit of improvements,” said defending NHRA Pro Stock world champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. who drove to the winner’s circle twice at the Arizona Nationals in 2009 and 2011. “The track is under new management this year, which we're excited about. They've made a lot of improvements to the grounds, not just to the racetrack.”

Formerly known as Firebird International Raceway, the facility made plenty of upgrades including a new concrete track surface and launch pad, timing system, public-address systems, and new scoreboards. Both Coughlin and 2012 NHRA Champ Allen Johnson were among the first to test out the refurbished track last month but more work was done to prepare and improve the surface for this weekend’s racing.

“They’ve done a great job to get the track ready and it’s very good and consistent but we just have to adapt to it a bit better,” said Johnson who earned a title in Phoenix in 2005. “We were a bit too conservative on our first run and aggressive on our second.”

Johnson paced the Mopar entries with the third quickest elapsed time (6.553 Seconds)and set the top speed with 211.83 mph in Friday’s second qualifying session but sits sixth overall. V. Gaines, who drove his Mopar to a runner-up finisher at the 2014 season opening event in Pomona was ninth (6.579 sec / 210.21 mph) while Coughlin (6.598 / 211.43) rounded out the top-10. Also joining the Mopar contingent at this event with HEMI-powered Dodge entries are Phoenix native Matt Hartford (13th) and Deric Kramer (18th). The provisional pole position currently is being held by competitor Chris McGaha with a 6.530 sec/ 210.60 mph pass.

Pomona, Calif. (Sunday, Feb. 9, 2014) – Jeg Coughlin Jr. kicked off his Pro Stock title defense starting from the eighth position in his JEGS.com/Mopar Dodge Avenger and took down Rodger Brogdon to begin his day, with a winning 6.568/211.66 pass. In a second-round matchup against former J&J Racing teammate Nobile, Coughlin came out on the losing end with a slower 6.568/211.30 despite a slightly quicker reaction time.

J&J Racing team owner and driver Allen Johnson will look to rebound following a quick exit at Pomona. After a strong two days of qualifying in which he earned eight bonus points and put his Mopar Express Lane Dodge Avenger in the No. 2 position, Johnson suffered a first-round upset at the hands of Larry Morgan. Johnson’s 6.567/211.36 effort, paired with an uncharacteristically sluggish .128 reaction time, wasn’t enough to reel in Morgan at the finish. Rounding out the five-car Mopar Pro Stock field, Matt Hartford was unable to edge Jason Line at the top end in a first-round battle.

“I haven’t been feeling well all weekend, but that’s no excuse for getting distracted on the start,” said Johnson, the 2012 Pro Stock champion. “We have a really strong package right now to build on, as the Mopar Express Lane Dodge was really great all weekend. I’m disappointed to start the season like this but I’ll take the negative and turn it into a positive by making myself a little bit madder so I can come out at Phoenix with a vengeance.”

Pomona, Calif. (Saturday, Feb. 8) – Mopar Dodge Avenger NHRA Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson improved his qualifying numbers in both rounds on Saturday to start from the No. 2 spot and face Larry Morgan when elimination rounds begin on Sunday, Feb. 9, for the season-opening 54th Annual NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona, Calif.

Pomona, Calif. (February 6, 2014) — A talented trio of former and defending champions will key the Team Mopar effort heading into the season-opener for the 2014 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, the 54th annual NHRA Winternationals, scheduled to take place Feb. 6-9 at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona, Calif.

The Team Mopar NHRA Pro Stock duo of Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Allen Johnson will enter the 2014 campaign seeking to secure a third straight Pro Stock crown for the Mopar brand. Coughlin captured his fifth career Pro Stock championship in 2013 behind the wheel of his JEGS.com/Mopar Dodge Avenger, tuned by the Johnson & Johnson Racing team and engine builder Roy Johnson. Owner of 56 career Pro Stock event victories, the Ohio native is pumped up and ready to add to his win totals.

“There’s a definite spring in our step,” said Coughlin. “We’re coming off such a solid season, and obviously we ended the year on the top step of the podium, as it were, so that’s kept us in high spirits throughout the off-season.”

Johnson & Johnson Racing owner Allen Johnson, Coughlin’s teammate, is also determined to keep the Pro Stock crown in his team’s camp — but preferably on his side of the pit stall. After ending a 17-year quest by racing to the Pro Stock title in 2012, Johnson scored four wins in his Mopar Dodge Avenger in 2013, and finished second to Coughlin in the championship standings.

“Along with Jeg, you’ve got back-to-back Pro Stock champs together on the same team, so of course for 2014 I’m very optimistic,” said Johnson, who broke through for his first win at Pomona at the 2012 NHRA Finals. “It’s also a big year for Mopar with the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the 426 race HEMI in 2014, so any victories and championships we bring home this year will be icing on their cake.”

Veteran Pro Stocker V. Gaines will also return to the wheel of his own Mopar-powered Dodge Avenger, following a top-10 finish to the 2013 season. The Denver-area native raced to four runner-up finishes last year.

Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) driver and 2011 NHRA Funny Car champion Matt Hagan will start off the season at Pomona with a new look, carrying the yellow-and-blue colors of the Mopar Express Lane quick-oil change service on his 10,000 horsepower Dodge Charger R/T.

“When they sent me the pictures of the Express Lane car, I got even more excited to get back in the car,” said Hagan, who ended the 2013 season with a victory at Pomona in the NHRA Finals, his fifth win of the year en route to a runner-up finish in the standings. “It looks great, looks fast. I love the old school feeling it has. I hope (crew chief) Dickie (Venables) and the guys get to have a lot of pictures of it in the Winner's Circle.”

Hagan will be joined by Jack Beckman, Ron Capps and new addition Tommy Johnson Jr. to form a powerhouse four-driver DSR Dodge Charger R/T squad hunting for the Mopar brand’s third Funny Car crown in four years.

Beckman, the 2012 Funny Car title winner, finished third in the standings last season but was unable to score an event win, a streak he hopes to end at the NHRA Winternationals. Capps, a fan favorite who has earned four series runner-up spots in his pursuit of a Funny Car crown, is the longest serving member of the Mopar-powered DSR team. Johnson is no stranger to Mopar power, having campaigned HEMI-engine fueled Top Fuel dragsters and Funny Cars during his long career.

Two hours of NHRA Winternationals qualifying coverage are scheduled to be televised on ESPN2 and ESPN2HD on Saturday, Feb. 8, beginning at 11 p.m. (ET). Three hours of elimination rounds coverage will be broadcast on ESPN2 and ESPN2HD starting at 8 p.m. (ET) on Sunday, Feb. 9.