PRO STOCK

"We had a good run today and it's all on account of [crew chief] Bob Glidden and the crew," said Coughlin. "We qualified well on Thursday and Friday but Saturday morning we hurt the motor. We put the back-up one in there and we dropped off so Bob and the guys basically spent the night fixing the primary motor and their work obviously paid off.

"The guys deserved this. If effort won trophies we'd have earned a bunch of them this year. It's been about one year since this team was formed and I know the crew guys and Bob haven't had many days off, and their days are usually 14-16 hours long. So naturally they're very, very excited."

Just after celebrating in the winner's circle at Pomona Raceway for the fifth time in his career, Coughlin announced that he's leaving Don Schumacher Racing.

"I'm easing off to the side for awhile," Coughlin said. "My home is in the NHRA but things didn't work out here exactly the way I had hoped. I started questioning if I was still enjoying myself mid-summer and when that happens it suddenly hits you that you need to step back and reevaluate what you're doing. I'll be back, but I need a break.

Tom Martino took over the controls of a brand new Dodge Stratus R/T for owner Larry Morgan at the Pomona Finals, but unfortunately grabbed a red light in the final round against Coughlin for the first all-Mopar Pro Stock final since Seattle of 2001 where Mark Osborne defeated Darrell Alderman.  Martino talked with his GM Racing friends prior to the Pomona Final and wore his Pontiac-branded driving suit during qualifying and eliminations. In addition to the runner-up spot, Martino's ride garnered best engineered honors as well. (Zak Hawthorne photo)

"I don't think any of the people involved can put a finger on why this didn't work. Certainly Don gave the team everything they needed to succeed. For whatever reason it just didn't pan out. I want to thank Don for the opportunity and I wish him the very best of luck moving forward. I'm hopeful that someone will slip into my spot and do really well in the years to come.

"My true love for the sport was born in the sportsman ranks and I plan on racing as much as possible with our stable of cars. I want to rekindle that special feeling of competitiveness that has driven me and my brothers for so long. I have a lot of friends in the sportsman classes and it'll be fun to go head-to-head with them again. It will also be real nice to get away from the pressures of racing at the top level for a little while."

Greg Anderson, the 2005 Pro Stock champion, was eliminated in the quarterfinals by Coughlin.