Allen Johnson - NHRA Prostock.

Jeg Coughlin Jr. Runs to Final Round in Mopar®/JEGS.com Dodge Avenger Debut at NHRA Winternationals.

Jeg Coughlin Jr. made sure he was noticed in his return to the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Pro Stock ranks, as he advanced to the final round in his Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Avenger on Sunday, Feb. 12, during the 52nd Annual NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in Pomona, Calif.

Coughlin began the event as the No. 14 qualifier, facing off in the first round against third-seeded Ronnie Humphrey. Jeg. Jr. used a starting line advantage coupled with a pass of 6.581-seconds at 210.47 mph to pick up the win over Humphrey, who ran a faster 6.569/211.99. The quarterfinals found the native of Delaware, Ohio taking on fellow Mopar-powered driver Vincent Nobile, the No. 6 qualifier. Coughlin ran a 6.590/209.85 number to pick up the win to Nobile’s 6.609/209.43 mark.

In the semifinals, Coughlin was victorious over Mike Edwards, who fouled out with a red-light. Coughlin was paired with former Pro Stock champion Greg Anderson in the final round. Jeg got off the line first with a reaction time of .017, though his run of 6.586/209.62 wasn’t enough to defeat Anderson, who posted a 6.459/210.87.

"The team really showed a lot of character this weekend," said Coughlin. "This is the third track we’ve been on since we started this program. We’re really just starting to peck away at our inefficiencies. After the three qualifying runs, we were fourteenth, and we kind of clawed our way through it today."

Fellow Team Mopar Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson opened the weekend as the No. 4 qualifier and advanced to the quarterfinals. He picked up an opening round win over Erica Enders, who fouled out with a red-light. In the quarters, the native of Greeneville, Tenn. took on Anderson, and got off the line first, recording a 6.570/210.93, to his opponent’s winning 6.550/210.97.

"We were solid, consistent and made good runs, but not great runs," said Johnson. "We’ll take this, be happy, and try to build on it at Phoenix. For the first race of the year we had a good qualifying position, a good car and good team work. We’ve had success at Phoenix in the past, and hopefully we'll grab our first win of the year there."

V. Gaines, the No. 15 qualifier in a Mopar-powered Dodge Avenger, fell in the first round with a run of 6.646/208.97 to Edwards, who posted a 6.649/211.06.

Coughlin is currently second in the NHRA Pro Stock standings, with Johnson fifth, Nobile sixth and Gaines 14th. Next up for the Mopar-powered NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Pro Stock competitors is the 28th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals, Feb. 17–19 at Firebird International Raceway in Chandler, Ariz.

Jeg Coughlin Jr., shown above in action, reached the final round of the NHRA Winternationals in his Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Avenger, in his return to the NHRA Pro Stock class.

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Allen Johnson, shown above in action in his Mopar Dodge Avenger, during the season-opening NHRA Winternationals, where he reached the quarterfinals.

Team Mopar Drivers Continue to Gear up for Pro Stock Opener.

Team Mopar drivers Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Allen Johnson continue testing in preparation for the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Pro Stock season. Jeg Jr. took part in the Pre-season Blast-Off at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Feb. 3-5, while Johnson will be testing in Las Vegas early this week.

Jeg Jr., who is making his return to the Pro Stock class after a hiatus last season, also tested his Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Avenger at Palm Beach (Fla.) International Raceway last month. The four-time Pro Stock champion enters the 2012 season with 52 career Pro Stock wins, which rank him fourth on the all-time win list.

Johnson will be making his first passes since having off-season surgery to repair his right bicep, as he takes to the track for test sessions on Monday, February 6 and Tuesday, February 7 in Las Vegas. The Team Mopar veteran finished a career-best fourth in the Pro Stock standings last season, scoring one victory and reaching the final round four times.

The 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season opens for Jeg Jr. and Johnson this week, Feb. 9–12 with the 52nd Annual NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club (Calif.) Raceway at Pomona.

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Jeg Coughlin Jr., shown above in action during testing, as he gears up for a return to the NHRA Pro Stock ranks, beginning later this week at the NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, Calif.

Team Mopar Records Unofficial Fastest Pass in Pro Stock History.

Mopar® Dodge Avenger NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson and his J&J Racing team unofficially recorded the fastest pass in Pro Stock history during testing on Thursday, Jan. 19, with Richie Stevens turning in a run of 6.466-seconds at 212.51 mph. The current official NHRA Pro Stock record is 6.477-seconds.

Stevens piloted the Mopar Dodge Avenger at Bradenton Motorsports Park in Bradenton, Fla., for Johnson, as he continues to heal from off-season surgery to repair his right bicep.

"We’ve really worked hard on the car during both test sessions this off-season," said Johnson. "We have the car working really good down low and it turned into a spectacular run. We learned a lot during the test this week that we will work on in the shop before we head west."

Stevens also turned in a 6.48-second pass earlier in the week. The test session was the second of the off-season for the team, with plans for more test runs at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Feb. 3–5, with Johnson back behind the wheel.

"I’m very excited to get back in our Mopar Dodge Avenger in Las Vegas," noted Johnson. "It will be good to get the feel of the car again and get into a rhythm and get honed in to go to Pomona. We want to make sure we come out of the box strong this year."

The 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season kicks off for Johnson Feb. 9–12 with the 52nd Annual NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club (Calif.) Raceway at Pomona.

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Richie Stevens, filling in for Allen Johnson, unofficially recorded the fastest pass in Pro Stock history during testing on Thursday, Jan. 19. (Russ Emmons Photo)

Team Mopar Off-Season Update: Allen Johnson.

Team Mopar NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson continues to recuperate from surgery on his right bicep that he underwent following the season finale at Pomona in November. The native of Greeneville, Tenn. began rehab for his arm on December 30, and is on pace to return to the cockpit for testing later this month.

Prior to the holidays, Johnson and his J&J Racing team tested in Bradenton, Fla. with veteran Pro Stock driver Richie Stevens behind the wheel. The team tested both of their race cars for four full days in preparation for the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing season.

"The testing went pretty well," said Johnson, who finished a career-best fourth in points in 2011. "We worked through a number of things. We had a long list of scenarios we wanted to try out, some worked and some didn’t. That’s the main goal of testing, to try different things and continue to learn and get faster."

The 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season kicks off for Johnson Feb. 9–12 with the 52nd Annual NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club (Calif.) Raceway at Pomona.

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Allen Johnson and his J&J Racing team recently tested in Bradenton, Fla. with veteran Richie Stevens behind the wheel, as Johnson continues to recover from surgery on his right bicep.

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