INAUGURAL WORLD DOORSLAMMER NATIONALS
Coughlin said. “There’s no more prideful feeling
than pulling around for a final of a big-money
race, and this one is right there at the top with
them now. To see all the fans and all the teams
crowded around to take in the moment, it’s pretty
cool. You want to make it happen and fortunately
we did that.”
For a final year, this is already shaping up to be
a remarkable final year for Coughlin. Deemed the
“Breaking Barriers” retirement tour, Coughlin has
already racked up a number of milestones, winning
the NHRA opener in Pomona. He followed
that up with the scintillating victory at the World
Doorslammer Nationals, and while the season
may be currently on hold due to the coronavirus
public health crisis, Coughlin has already done a
number of special things to make his retirement
tour a storytelling success.
“It really felt like things didn’t totally come
together for Rickie (Jones, crew chief) until the
semifinals, but the guys fought through it all to
get us in position to win and we were able to pull
it off. It was worth the effort; winning $75,000
LEGENDARY FROM THE FINAL ROUND MATCHUP WITH LONGTIME
RIVAL GREG ANDERSON - WHICH ENDED UP BEING A THRILLING
SIDE-BY-SIDE DUEL - TO WINNING $75,000 IN THE LARGEST
SINGLE-RACE PAYOUT IN PRO STOCK HISTORY, IT WAS A
WEEKEND FILLED WITH LEGENDARY PERFORMANCES FROM ONE
OF THE BIGGEST ICONS IN THE SPORT.
in cash is pretty bad ass.
“We were extremely excited to be the last one
standing at the inaugural race. The format of this
race was very intense.”
With the victory, Coughlin, who will retire
from full-time Pro Stock racing at the end of the
2020 season, continues to build on a spectacular
stretch that includes two NHRA wins in the
past three races dating back to last year, plus the
history-making win in Orlando.
With the spotlight on Pro Stock, the class delivered,
and Coughlin unsurprisingly was a key
part of that. The team, led by crew chief Rickie
Jones, was dialed in when it counted, slugging it
out in eliminations in spectacular fashion.
It took a trio of passes in the 6.40s to do
it, but Coughlin beat Bo Butner, his nephew,
Troy Coughlin Jr., in a meaningful all-Coughlin
matchup, and Elite Motorsports teammate
Aaron Stanfield before the titanic matchup
with Anderson.
Considering that, and nipping the four-time
world champ at the finish line, it was a treat to see
an emotional celebration from everyone involved.
It led to a festive scene, Coughlin driving the car
back to the pits after the winner’s circle party, and
a massive sense of accomplishment.
“We’re on top of the world,” crew chief Rickie
Jones said in the winner’s circle. “To win this race
is just huge. It was the throwdown of throwdowns
right there, and nobody was holding anything
back. It was neck and neck, and we were fortunate
to come up on the right side of it. It was just an
unbelievable job by the whole team. It was really
special. We’re on a great roll now, so hopefully we
can keep it going. This is definitely some great
bragging rights and we’re going to take some
time to enjoy this.”
It truly was a fitting final round between two
of the sport’s most successful drivers.
Coughlin and Anderson met for the 23rd time
in a Pro Stock final round (including one shootout
final in 2009), as the two class legends – with a
combined 158 NHRA Pro Stock wins between
them – treated fans to another classic duel.
62 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated.com Issue 156