EVENT PREVIEW

AAA INSURANCE NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS

ST. LOUIS, MO * SEPT. 26-28

Multipurpose Gateway Motorsports Park, in the shadow of the famed St. Louis Gateway Arch, returned to the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series schedule in 2012 after a one-year hiatus with a new event in the Countdown to the Championship. The track previously held events in the summer beginning in 1997 that were known for surprise winners.

2013 Recap: Reigning Top Fuel event and world champion Antron Brown returned to the winner's circle two races after suffering a surprise DNQ. John Force won in Funny Car for the first time since a midseason crew chief swap with Robert Hight. In the third race since sponsorship salvaged her season, Erica Enders-Stevens scored in Pro Stock. Matt Smith endured a bout with food poisoning while finding the winner's circle in Pro Stock Motorcycle.

For a complete event racing schedule, driver entry list, and more, get your event program for only $5 trackside at the NitroMall, any NHRA Official Licensed Merchandise trailer, or the National Dragster trailer!

Gateway Motorsports Park * 700 Raceway Blvd. * Madison, IL 62060 * www.gatewaymsp.com

Elevation: 455 feet * Radio Frequency: 92.7 FM * Tickets: www.gatewaymsp.com; 855-RACE-TIK (855-722-3845)

Television Schedule

Qualifying: 3:30-5 a.m., Sept. 28

Eliminations: 8-11 p.m., Sept. 28

exclusively on ESPN

All times Eastern. Schedule subject to change; check local listings. NHRA's complete television schedule can be found on NHRA.com.

Track Records

Top Fuel

E.T. - 3.737 (Antron Brown, September 2012)

Speed - 327.74 (Tony Schumacher, September 2013)

Funny Car

E.T. - 4.001 (Matt Hagan, September 2013)

Speed - 320.20 (Hagan, September 2013)

Pro Stock

E.T. - 6.496 (Jason Line, September 2012)

Speed - 213.47 (Line, September 2012)

Pro Stock Motorcycle

E.T. - 6.796 (Hector Arana Sr., September 2013)

Speed - 198.58 (Arana, September 2013)

NHRA NATIONALS

READING, PA * OCT. 2-5

Maple Grove Raceway has a long history of record performances, including the first side-by-side quarter-mile four-second and 300-mph Top Fuel passes, and the cool October climates continue to offer more of the same. The event is the fourth in four weeks and marks the beginning of the second half of the Countdown to the Championship.

2013 Recap: John Force made his team's first three-second run and recorded the fastest pass in Funny Car history (323.50 mph) while scoring his second straight win. Shawn Langdon took command of the Top Fuel points lead with his sixth win of the season. Jeg Coughlin Jr. (Pro Stock) earned the win and the points lead with holeshot victories over Jason Line and Allen Johnson in the last two rounds. Points leader Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) won his second straight race.

For a complete event racing schedule, driver entry list, and more, get your event program for only $5 trackside at the NitroMall, any NHRA Official Licensed Merchandise trailer, or the National Dragster trailer!

Maple Grove Raceway * 30 Stauffer Park Lane * Mohnton, PA 19540-7751 * www.maplegroveraceway.com Elevation: 548 feet * Radio Frequency: 91.3 FM * Tickets: www.maplegroveraceway.com; 610-856-9200

Television Schedule

Qualifying: 3:30-5 a.m., Oct. 5

Eliminations: 8-11 p.m., Oct. 5

Sportsman Eliminations: 6-7 p.m., Oct. 12

exclusively on ESPN2

All times Eastern. Schedule subject to change; check local listings. NHRA's complete television schedule can be found on NHRA.com.

Track Records

Top Fuel

E.T. - 3.701 (Antron Brown, October 2012)

Speed - 334.15 (Shawn Langdon, October 2012)

Funny Car

E.T. - 3.986 (Jack Beckman, October 2012)

Speed - 323.50 (John Force, October 2013)

Pro Stock

E.T. - 6.477 (Jason Line, October 2011)

Speed - 214.35 (Line, October 2012)

Pro Stock Motorcycle

E.T. - 6.728 (Andrew Hines, October 2012)

Speed - 198.73 (Hines, October 2012)

JEGS NHRA Pacific SPORTSnationals, Oct. 3-5, Las Vegas

The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway will play host to the 9th annual JEGS NHRA Pacific SPORTSnationals. The popular program designed to showcase NHRA's Sportsman racers will feature drivers in six NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series categories who will vie for valuable points leading to divisional and national championships.

The JEGS NHRA Pacific SPORTSnationals boasts a guaranteed purse of nearly $65,000 and competing classes include Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, and Super Street. The event will also include the division's Top Sportsman and Top Dragster categories.

While the focus of the event will be on competition in the core NHRA classes, other special events include Saturday's Super Stock and Stock class eliminations and special Shootout races for Top Sportsman, Top Dragster, Super Comp, Super Gas, and Super Street racers Saturday afternoon.

NHRA reintroduced the SPORTSnationals 11 years ago at No Problem Raceway Park in Belle Rose, La., to rave reviews from racers and spectators. Prior to that, NHRA had hosted the SPORTSnationals from 1974 to 1986 at a trio of tracks, including Beech Bend Raceway Park in Bowling Green, Ky. (1974- 80; 1985-86); the old Houston Int'l Raceway (1981-82); and Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis (1983-84).

This season, NHRA scheduled three SPORTSnationals events, including the JEGS NHRA Cajun SPORTSnationals held in Belle Rose in March; the JEGS NHRA Northern SPORTSnationals in Columbus in September; and the JEGS NHRA Pacific SPORTSnationals in Las Vegas.

The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

7000 Las Vegas Blvd. N.

Las Vegas, NV 89115

www.lvms.com

Event Sponsor: JEGS High Performance

For more than 52 years, JEGS Mail Order has been supplying high-performance parts to racing professionals and enthusiasts across the country and around the globe. The Delaware, Ohio-based company has a simple formula for success: From the beginning, it has raced right alongside its customers, so it inherently knows what racers need and how quickly those items need to be delivered. JEGS has also shown unwavering support of multiple professional series, most notably NHRA. The company is the title sponsor of the annual JEGS Allstars event in Chicago and all three JEGS SPORTSnationals and has been a part of NHRA's contingency program since its inception. Team JEGS fields championship-winning race cars in Pro Stock, Pro Mod, Top Dragster, Top Sportsman, Super Comp, Super Gas, Stock, and Jr. Dragster.

JEGS is family

Ever since Jeg Coughlin Sr. began his drag racing career in the 1950s, the sport has always served as a great outlet to bring his ever-expanding family closer together. At first, his wife was the only crewmember he had. Then, one-by-one, his four boys joined the fun until, not surprisingly, they all fell in love with the quarter-mile and began competing in a variety of classes with great success.

Now, a third generation of Coughlins is blossoming, and the racetrack is still one of the places where the family routinely gets together. And family patriarch Jeg Sr. is still very much a part of the mix, serving as a vital consultant to his sons and grandkids.

At the same time, even when considering the importance of marketing their highperformance mail-order parts business, family always takes precedence over on-track activities. Each of the Coughlin brothers has taken sabbaticals from the sport through the years to devote more attention to their home lives.

Family has always been, and will remain, the top priority for Team JEGS.

JEGS is business

Jeg Sr. started JEGS Automotive Inc. in a tiny garage near downtown Columbus (Ohio) simply because there was no other place in the Midwest to get the high-performance parts he and his friends needed to jazz up their hot rods. As word spread that JEGS had everything a racing enthusiast would ever need, the company grew and quickly became a viable business entity.

When Jeg Sr.'s four boys - John, Troy, Mike, and Jeg Jr. - were old enough, they bought the burgeoning company from their dad with his assistance and took it to new heights, each managing distinct areas of the operation to maximum effectiveness. JEGS High Performance has become a giant in the industry with two retail stores, four call centers, and a massive distribution warehouse that delivers more than <money>$250 million worth of products to automobile enthusiasts all over the world each year.

Before long, the third generation will be in the mix because many of the older kids already spend their summer months learning the business.

JEGS is racing

There is no question the Coughlin family loves motorsports. Dating back to Jeg Sr.'s early on-track achievements in the 1960s, the family has successfully parlayed its love of drag racing into a worldwide marketing effort that has set them apart from the competition.

With a combined six NHRA world championships, 15 division championships, and more than 100 victories at both the national, divisional, and local level, it could also be argued that Team JEGS is one of the most accomplished racing entities in the 60-year history of organized drag racing.

JEGS is caring

Jeg Sr., his sons, and their families created the JEGS Foundation Racing for Cancer Research program benefiting the Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute at the Ohio State University and the Ireland Cancer Center of University Hospitals Health System.

With 100 percent of proceeds going directly to cancer research, the JEGS Foundation Racing for Cancer Research program already has raised several million dollars. Team JEGS also has set up mobile cancer-screening centers at NHRA events and keeps the topic front and center with millions of drag racing fans each weekend.