Here’s a tip to drag racing fans. Don’t tell Pro Stock driver Larry Morgan, “Welcome back.”

“I never left,” Morgan responded.
Race fans were likely referring to the first eight races Morgan had failed to qualify in. Morgan failed to qualify, but his engine lease customers were flat flying. In fact, one of them won a race.

“We’ve been trying a lot of things to make our rental program better,” Morgan said. “When you have a bunch of guys out here running, you just have to move forward with the program.”

Morgan admitted he was trying to change the way he ran the engines.

Here’s a tip to drag racing fans. Don’t tell Pro Stock driver Larry Morgan, “Welcome back.”

“I never left,” Morgan responded.

Race fans were likely referring to the first eight races Morgan had failed to qualify in. Morgan failed to qualify, but his engine lease customers were flat flying. In fact, one of them won a race.

“We’ve been trying a lot of things to make our rental program better,” Morgan said. “When you have a bunch of guys out here running, you just have to move forward with the program.”

Morgan admitted he was trying to change the way he ran the engines.

“That put me behind,” Morgan added.

Failing to qualify isn’t easy for a competitive driver to stomach and in any other situation the sixteen-time national event winner would have a problem. Morgan was investing in his future and he adds, that’s made him all the better.

“I’m still here and a lot of other guys who have tried to do the same things aren’t,” Morgan said. “I think we’ve been successful with our programs but I’ve had to take a beating. I knew going into the situation that I was going to take a beating.”

The beating for the Lucas Oil-sponsored Morgan was not a lack of power. He just hadn’t found the right combination to channel the newfound gains.

“We had plenty of horsepower,” Morgan admitted. “I can tell you that I wouldn’t leave my shop if I didn’t have plenty of horsepower. My crew works very hard to do what they do and we are trying to hop up all of these engines and that’s difficult to do when you have four guys who think differently.

“That’s why I have to go out there and prove the stuff works before they get it. That’s the situation I was in.”

Morgan steered his Lucas Oil Dodge Stratus R/T to the quarterfinals of the NHRA Supernationals in Englishtown, NJ. Each of his two rounds of racing were decided by a matter of inches—with one outcome positive and one negative.