Team Mopar Claims Pro Stock and Funny Car Titles at the Route 66 Nationals

Team Mopar had a great weekend as the Mello Yello Drag Racing Series took to the track in Joliet Illinois for the Route 66 Nationals – with a Dodge racer taking the win in both the Pro Stock and Funny Car classes.

Things started off strong for the Mopar drivers in the Funny Car class as Chargers accounted for three of the top six starting positions with Ron Capps taking the top qualifying spot with a run of 3.988 at 320.28 miles per hour.  Jack Beckman qualified 3rd, Matt Hagan started 6th, Johnny Gray started 11^th and Jeff Arend started in the 15^th spot.  In round 1, Jeff Arend lost to Bob Tasca and Johnny Gray lost to Matt Hagan while Jack Beckman beat Alexis DeJoria, Ron Capps beat Bob Bode and – as mentioned – Hagan bested Gray with the fastest pass of the round (314.83mph) to move onto round #2.  In round 2, Capps knocked off Robert Hight with the best run of the round (4.073) while Hagan beat the second Mopar driver in a row as he took down Jack Beckman.  Capps lost traction around 200 feet from the starting line to hand the win to John Force while Hagan knocked out Bob Tasca after Tasca pulled out to the starting line advantage.

This set up a final round shootout between Matt Hagan and John Force.  Force’s Mustang took the starting line advantage but Hagan quickly drove around the drag racing legend and he held Force off for the 8^th win of his career and his 3^rd of the season.

Hagan now sits in first place in the Funny Car championship standings – 106 points ahead of Cruz Pedregon.  Johnny Gray is current 4^th (161 points back), Capps is 5^th (169 points back) and Beckman sits 6^th (187 points out)..

Over in the Pro Stock ranks, Dodge Avenger race cars claimed the 2^nd and 3^rd starting position while Vincent Nobile started 8^th and V Gaines started 14^th.  In round 1, Vincent Nobile beat Greg Stanfield, Allen Johnson beat Steve Kent, and Jeg Coughlin beat Rodger Brogdon while V Gaines lost on the line to the slower Greg Anderson.  In round 2, Nobile took on top qualifier Mike Edwards and even though Vincent pulled the better reaction time, Edwards took him down with a smoking fast run.  Allen Johnson turned the second best time of round 2 as he beat Shane Gray and Jeg Coughlin turned the quickest ET of the round (6.595) and the best speed (209.65) to beat Jason Line.  This set up a final four run between Allen Johnson and teammate Jeg Coughlin with Jeg making a statement – taking the big starting line advantage and turning in the best ET of the round (6.584) to secure his place in the finals.

In the finals, Jeg Coughlin lined up with Greg Anderson, who took down top qualifier Mike Edwards in round 3 to set up a Jeg’s versus Summit battle.  Anderson grabbed the starting line advantage but when he lost traction shortly into the run, Coughlin soared to the easy win.  This was Jeg’s 2^nd win of the year and the 54^th of his career.

Jeg Coughlin now sits in the 2^nd spot in the 2013 Pro Stock championship standings, 128 points behind Mike Edwards.  Allen Johnson sits 3^rd (130 points back of Edwards), Nobile is 8^th (414 points back) and Gaines sits in the 10^th spot (559 points out).

“It was great to have Matt Hagan and Jeg Coughlin Jr. add two more wins in their Dodge vehicles today with their efforts at the Route 66 Nationals and everyone at Mopar is very proud of the strong first half of the season we’ve had,” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group LLC’s service, parts and customer-care brand. “Earning wins in both Pro Stock and Funny Car classes at the same event for the third time this year, is a great way to showcase all the hard work that Mopar HEMI-powered teams and drivers are putting in to defend both world titles this season.”

Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com

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