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Abstract We study finite-coupling corrections on the energy loss of light quarks in strongly coupled $${\mathcal {N}}=4$$ N = 4 super Yang–Mills (SYM) plasma. We perform the analysis by computing the stopping distance of an image jet induced by a massless source field, characterized by a massless particle falling along the null geodesic in Einstein gravity with curvature-squared ( $$R^2$$ R 2 ) corrections. It turns out that the stopping distance in the $$R^2$$ R 2 theories can be larger or smaller than its SYM counterpart depending on the higher-derivative coefficients. Moreover, we evaluate the stopping distance in the Gauss–Bonnet background and find that increasing $$\lambda _\textrm{GB}$$ λ GB (a dimensionless parameter in Gauss–Bonnet gravity) leads to a decrease in the stopping distance, thus enhancing the energy loss of light quarks, in agreement with previous findings for the drag force, jet quenching parameter, and the instantaneous energy loss of light quarks using shooting strings.