(Press Release from NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications)
With five races remaining in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season, Doug Coby might be on his way to capturing a sixth championship.
In his first five title seasons, Coby managed to score titles in various different ways — including dominating years that left no doubt and points chases that went down to the final turn in the season finale.
As of now, he holds a 47-point advantage in the standings over Justin Bonsignore and Ron Silk, which is just one-point shy of what a driver could earn in one race. NASCAR.com analyzed his five title runs against what he’s accomplished so far this season through the first 11 races.
RACING-REFERENCE: Relive Doug Coby’s Title Seasons
Coby has four victories, with top five finishes in eight races — but he’s finished inside the top 10 in all of the events. Prior to this season, he only did that once in his five title seasons. He’s led a total of 728 laps, which is the highest of the statistical comparison.
Some highlights from his previous title seasons:
2017:
- 1 win, 7 top fives, 7 top 10s, 1 DNF, 517 laps led
2016:
- 3 wins, 6 top fives, 9 top 10s, 1 DNF, 667 laps led
2015:
- 4 wins, 7 top fives, 8 top 10s, 2 DNF’s, 515 laps led
2014:
- 1 win, 9 top fives, 11 top 10s, 0 DNF’s, 144 laps led
2012:
- 4 wins, 7 top fives, 8 top 10s, 1 DNF, 318 laps led
After putting all the stats in perspective, many of them look similar across seasons. At this pace, Coby has matched his win total from 2015, a year where he only won by 11 points over current Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Ryan Preece. In 2014, the only other year where he finished in the top 10 in the first 11, Coby won by 22 points. If he keeps up the current pace, he’ll beat those two numbers combined in this year’s tally.
He will also be in search of a little bit more history going down the stretch. No driver in the modern era of the Whelen Modified Tour has accomplished top 10 finishes in all of the races in one season, and that’s a mark Coby will definitely want to hit.
He’s added seven Mayhew Tools Dominator Pole Awards this season. In 2016, he won nine poles en route to the title. Other than that, his 2019 number is already the second highest of his career. His seven poles has moved him from ninth into a tie for third with Reggie Ruggerio with 29 career, while the two of them trail Mike Stefanik by 19. He can pass Ruggerio, but won’t be able to catch the top two.
With his four wins, Coby’s moved into a tie for sixth-place on the all-time wins list with Mike Ewanitsko with a total of 28. If he can earn three more in the final five races, he would tie Jeff Fuller, who is fifth with 31.
He is just 287 laps led away from matching his own high, which was a total of 1015 in 2016. His average finish is also over two positions higher than any other year in his career.
More history awaits Coby if he seals the deal. Currently, he’s tied with seven other drivers with five NASCAR national series, regional series or local series national titles. Included in that group are NASCAR Hall of Famers Bobby Allison – a two-time Modified and two-time Modified Special champion in addition to his Cup title — and Jack Ingram.
Six titles would tie him with NASCAR Hall of Famer Jerry Cook and make him one of just 15 drivers in NASCAR history to win six or more titles. With no signs of slowing down, he would be two-thirds of the way toward the immortal mark set by Richie Evans and Mike Stefanik.
Don’t quite give the title to Coby yet, though. With five races on the calendar, including what Coby points out are considered wild cards, he’s not counting on anything until he’s crowned champion.
“We won at Oswego (Speedway) and finished in the top five both other times, and I’ve taken a liking to it, so I expect us to be good there,” Coby said last week. “The Musket 250 (at New Hampshire Motor Speedway) is going to be a wild card for us, and so is Riverhead.”
He’s young. Possibly the future modified GOAT driver?
Doug said:
He’s young. Possibly the future modified GOAT driver?
That’s funny! Not even the best modified driver in 2019, let alone all time. NASCAR is far, faaaaar from the be all end all in determining best modified drivers of all time.
Jarzombek, Bodine, Troyer and Hendrick are 4 of the top 5 of all time and they never cared an iota about chasing points. Cook, with his 6 NASCAR championships isn’t in the same league as those 4.
In 2019, id put Hirschman, Hossfeld, Rocco, Santos and many others as better drivers than Colby cheese. He’s in the best seat in the business. Put anyone of about 20 others in that seat with that team, that $$, that crew and crew chief and they win just as much as Whiny Dougie!
But, Doug, that was an hilarious post you made! Thanks for the laugh!
Doug modified GOAT is and always will be Richie Evans. Back then they would race 3-4 times weekly, and Richie won allot of races, and was a threat whenever he pulled into the track. I would say Coby is a future Hall Of Fame candidate, but sorry not GOAT
Phil Moran is peaking. He really brings outstanding cars to the track.
Best ever – can’t comment – best out there in last 10 years I don’t think there should be a question – just focus on the results – the 2 team is an outstanding well oiled machine – they could put anyone they want in that car but who did they choose? Doug Colby went in the car and they have done nothing but win – I know they’ve got some special carburetor and he can’t drive in traffic and he has destroyed all the young people with his terrible vocabulary – but the fact remains Doug Colby any the 2 team are the best on tour over the last decade whether they win this title or not.
The old Tour should have stopped after Evans the new Tour should have begun when they put the Tour
Mods on spec tires None of the great drivers as i would call them were told they would have these 4 spec tires and your going to run 200 laps on them and oh yeah your Hutter and Tant engines will not be good anymore Nascar has come up with this spec engine so sell them, so lets reverse the times the tires were not cheaters just something special like 2 compounds across the face tires wars with the companies coming up with tires for the special few and i could go on give the new Tour what the old Tour had but its 2019 like it or not Coby may have 6 championships and the 52 had other drivers in the car and guess what Coby won them a championship.
When I think of the best, favorite, and greatest Modified drivers over my decades of following and being involved in Modified racing, Coby never comes up. Coby rides around in the best car in Modified racing. All those other names, such as Santos, Leaty, Spencer, Evans, Kent, Bodine, Bugs Stevens, Ruggerio, Jarzombeck, Hendrick, T. Hirschman, and others, and Coby still does not come close. All those other names represent DRIVERS that made it happen. Coby rides around in a car that makes it happen, a car provided by Phil Moran, probably the best Crew Chief in recent Modified racing, up there with Barry Kuhnel.
Coby is not alone. Lia has name recognition and two championships, but is still not respected as a driver.
Phil Moran is on another title path.
The only name that comes up with Hippocrates is Dareal What happened to the 500 word essays about the cheated up 2 car every time it won? Big carb special cam bla bla bla now anyone could drive the 2 car and win because Phil is perfect now YOUR a Joke!
Racer, consider “you’re” or “you are”.
The flux capacitor shows up. Watch the car. If you know what to look for, you’ll see it. If you don’t see it, you don’t know.
And Phil Moran is good, he has a history of doing well on other teams.
It’s a fun debate to have. There’s something to be said about Coby associating himself with a team that is knowledgeable and well financed over a really long period of time and dominating the era he is in.. Is Evan’s or anyone else other then Coby the greatest now…..sure if you say so. Will Evan’s or anyone else be the greatest after Coby finishes his career you could argue is an unknown.
First off, far and away the greatest modified driver is Richie Evans. End of conversation. Don’t even bring into account, for many years he built his own stuff. Plus he was the classiest person. Helped other drivers all the time. as far as my favorite of all time, Jarzombek. He ALWAYS put on a show. saw he EVERY week at Freeport. He owned that place, and they had some good drivers there every week. He also dominated at Riverhead, and had very good success at Islip.
I think those two could have driven any rules package you could throw at them, they were that good.
Then you have Bodine and Ruggerio and Stefanick. Don’t mis understand me Coby is an excellent driver, and he deserves all his accolades.
Hey Dadope, you forgot to mention Phil chose to go with a LFR chassis because he wanted more of a challenge
BRAVO!!!! Well said Ken Latham. Charlie was a regular at Islip, and I lived near there as a kid. Saw him plenty at Islip. Then I saw Evans regularly in Upstate NY, mostly at Shangri-La. Nobody comes close to these two guys. Not only did they put on a show on the track, they were extremely likable characters. Very entertaining as drivers behind the steering wheel and as ambassadors behind the microphone.
It is stunning how there are still Richie and Charlie Tee shirts and other memorabilia around. I see plenty of Richie Tee shirts at the track. These guys are legends. They are still sorely missed. Coby doesn’t have it, he could disappear today and would never be noticed.
Doug said:
Will Evan’s or anyone else be the greatest after Coby finishes his career you could argue is an unknown.
Haha
Hahahaha
Doug is a funny poster here for sure! “An unknown”? Hahahaha!
It is a certainty that no matter how Dug Colby Cheese finishes his career, he will never be close to the greatest modified driver of all time!
Not. Even. Close.
Thanks for the silliness and the laughs though!
Hahahaha!
Ken nailed it Richie Evens point blank end of conversation.
Doug bloviated, “Will Evan’s or anyone else be the greatest after Coby finishes his career you could argue is an unknown.”
Bigly WRONG. It is well known that Colby is 40 years old and there is NOTHING he can do with the rest of his career that would put him in the same league as Evans, Jarzombeck, Bodine, Spencer, Kent, Leaty, Troyer, T. Hirschman, and a couple others.
What we have here gentlemen sprinkled among the taunting and mockery are some pretty terrific remembrances and observations. Racer thinking outside the box for instance and not settling for low hanging fruit.
We all have our remembrances from the tracks we grew up with that are powerful but unreliable in the GOAT discussion. I offer Jerry Cook’s absence from the discussion as evidence that memories are unreliable in comparing drivers of different era’s.
The only thing I would strongly disagree with is with the term “end of discussion”. We do tend to know what we know and want what we are certain is true to be the end of the discussion. Unfortunately that mostly self serving wish usually ends up being completely futile.
Many of us witnessed Evans and saw bits and pieces of his extensive accomplishments. He is in the Nascar Hall of Fame after all as is Jerry Cook making only those two eligible for the modified GOAT discussion currently. History is not static however. It’s always viewed through the lens of the current audience in the current time. The fans of the future current time may have a different perspective.
Keep in mind by the time Coby ends his career many of we that viewed Evans greatness will not be around to say how we ended the discussion in 2019. Evans will be more an entry in the record books then a memory of the living. Trying to interpret his record will be confusing since only one year was in the tour structure as we know it.
I can imagine the possibility of a future where the weight of a recently departed driver from the sport such as Cokkby with an extensive record of wins spanning what could be decades by the time he is done may put him in the GOAT discussion. Is it the case now…….no. However he has laid a great foundation that under the right circumstances could put him in the elite circle at as some point in the future.
As of now Evans is the undisputed GOAT of modified racing. The only thing we disagree on is whether that could change at some point in the future.