Date: March 26, 2018 

Event: Alpha Energy Solutions 250 (Round 4 of 23) 

Series: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series 

Location: Martinsville (Va.) Speedway (0.526-mile oval) 

Start/Finish: 10th/26th (Running, completed 225 of 250 laps) 

Short Track, Long Weekend for Cody Coughlin

Coughlin Finished in the 26th-place in Postponed Alpha Energy Solutions 250

STATESVILLE, N.C. (March 26, 2018)—The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) Alpha Energy Solutions 250 at the Martinsville (Va.) Speedway ended nearly two days after it started on Monday, March 26, after rain mixed with light snow brought the proceedings to a halt after 23 laps.

For the first time since 1993, NASCAR officials postponed a race on account of snow. Large snowflakes began falling in the track area Saturday afternoon, and over six inches of snowfall accumulated overnight in south Virginia.

Cody Coughlin, part of the four-truck GMS Racing contingent, set the tenth-fastest lap in qualifying for 250-lap race, turning a lap of 19.902 seconds at a brisk 95.146 mph on the paper clip-shaped track in the final qualifying round. It was the Delaware, Ohio, native’s career best qualifying effort at the Martinsville Speedway in three starts in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

NASCAR started the race on Saturday as scheduled with the No. 2 JEGS Chevrolet Silverado in the 10th place, and Coughlin quickly maneuvered into the ninth-place by Lap 6. As the first caution flag waved on Lap 16, the 22-year old held position while battling a tight-handling No. 2 JEGS Chevrolet Silverado. Officials pulled the trucks onto pit road on Lap 23 when the rain showers halted the event at the .526-mile track. The Alpha Energy Solutions 250 did not restart for the rest of the day, and rain became snow, piling onto the race track throughout the night. With NASCAR’s first snow delay since at the Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway, NASCAR postponed both the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series events until Monday due to winter weather conditions on the track.

With a pause lasting over 24-hours, Coughlin had to keep his mind mentally focused and ready to pick-up where he left off. On Monday, Coughlin restarted the 131.5-mile event in the ninth-place in the 32-truck field, and settled into the top-ten as crew chief Jerry Baxter encouraged him.

“You are doing great man,” Baxter said.

Lap-traffic presented hazards Coughlin had to maneuver around, relegating him to a 13th-place. Continuing to battle with the same tight-handling setup he had on Saturday, Coughlin was able to maintain his position through the end of Stage One, Lap 70. Coughlin’s crew serviced the No. 2 JEGS Chevrolet Silverado with four tires, a chassis adjustment and fuel during the stage break, with an aim to combat the ill-tempered machine, and due to pit conditions, he was served a pit road penalty for pitting out of the assigned pit box. Although, he gained six spots on pit road with quick service by the JEGS team. Serving the penalty on Lap 83 damaged Coughlin’s race potential as he restarted Stage Two in the 26th-place and one lap down.

Coughlin was collected into a multi-truck incident in Turn 2 on Lap 86 with minor damage, but was able to advance up to 23rd place quickly after the Lap 93 restart, making a fast decision to not pit under caution. This team strategy, and Coughlin’s consistent maneuvering, positioned him well enough to recover his lost lap before being called in at the end of Stage 2 for four tires, chassis adjustments, and fuel. He lined up at the tail-end of the field for the Final Stage for one more big charge.

After receiving his lost lap back, Coughlin was running lap times comparable to the leader as he battled traffic. Coughlin overcame numerous race challenges and advanced through the field, and as the caution flag waved on Lap 160, he was in the 19th-place. With a willingness to overcome adversity, Coughlin raced his way to into the top-15 with the completion of 20 laps in the Final Stage. On Lap 188, his compelling performance met a brutal adversary when he suffered the loss of braking, and he came to pit road to address the issue, and going to the garage on Lap 194. Though the GMS Racing team worked to resolve the issue, Coughlin returned to the track on Lap 215,  25 laps down in the 26th-place. Coughlin showed a dogged resolve, and with stoic determination, continued the fight for contention and holding position and crossed the finish line in the 26th-place.

The next event on the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series schedule is the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event on Friday, May 4, at the Dover (Del.) International Speedway. The FS1 and Motor Racing Network (MRN) will broadcast the race starting at 5:00 p.m. (ET).

To keep up-to-date with the latest news, information and exclusive content, visit Cody Coughlin on his personal Twitter and Instagram page - @Cody_Coughlin, and on the official Facebook page at /CodyCoughlin2/. For more information on Cody Coughlin visit CodyCoughlin.com. Also, follow Team JEGS’ Twitter page - @TeamJEGS, and on Instagram at @team_jegs. You can also “like” Team JEGS on the official Facebook page at /TeamJEGS/.

For media relations / public relations, contact Courtney McGarry at Courtney.McGarry@JEGS.com.

ABOUT GMS RACING

GMS Racing competes full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with drivers Johnny Sauter, Dalton Sargeant, Justin Haley and Cody Coughlin, and also in the NASCAR XFINITY Series with Spencer Gallagher. Since the team's start in 2014, GMS Racing has grown to occupy several buildings located in Statesville, N.C. The campus also includes operations for GMS Fabrication. More information can be found at https://gmsracing.net/.