MORGAN TO DRIVE BRAD ANDERSON PRO MOD CAMARO
Larry Morgan understands the importance of destiny.
Next month at the NHRA Gatornationals, the 62-year old Morgan, who has 19 wins in 45 finals while racing Pro Stock, makes his Pro Modified driving debut.
Who said a seasoned veteran can't learn a new trick?
In the most unlikely pairing since he joined forces with Bob Glidden, Morgan will team up with legendary drag racer and successful manufacturer Brad Anderson for a run at the NHRA J&A Services Pro Modified championship.
"Brad Anderson called me a couple weeks ago and I answered the phone and said, ‘You must have a stupid question," Morgan said with a smile. "Brad said, 'Will you run my Pro Stock car?"
"I said, ‘That’s a stupid question."
Then the tone turned serious. Anderson then offered the driving job for his Pro Modified Camaro to Morgan.
"I said, ‘I don’t want to do it if I’m taking Jay’s ride," Morgan countered. "He goes, ‘No, Jay hurt himself last year. His shoulder’s been screwed up and he can’t drive. And I’m not sure he wants to drive."
For Morgan, it was the perfect mix of supply and demand.
"That’s why I’m running Pro Mod, I can’t afford not to drive it," Morgan admitted.
Morgan has been out of professional driving ever since he parked his Pro Stocker at the end of the 2015 season. He did fill in the open slot behind the wheel of a COPO Camaro in Stock Eliminator in 2016.
Morgan has many laps down the drag strip; estimated in the tens of thousands, but nothing can prepare him for the challenge of driving a supercharged doorslammer.
"I’ve never driven a supercharged car, so I guess it will be trial by fire," Morgan said.
"If someone said, ‘Does it scare you? I’d say, Hell yes!"
"I mean, it’s going to get my attention just looking at that crazy stuff. Like I said, it doesn’t scare me to the fact that I won’t do it. But I will have respect for it, I can tell you that."
Morgan admits, of the three Pro Modified power adders, the superchargers have always been his favorite.
"I don’t really care for nitrous by any means because I’ve never ever fooled with it and don’t know much about it," Morgan admitted.
Morgan has epitomized the blue collar image since he stepped into the professional ranks back in 1987. As Morgan sees it, Pro Modified is as blue collar as drag racing gets. And, for him, racing with a legend such as Anderson is just the icing on the cake.
"It’s an honor because Brad’s an icon out here, he wants to do it," said Morgan. "He’s got a business that supplies parts for a lot of these cars. I’ve just been a good friend to Brad for 30 something years. I’ve always admired him. Actually, it was an honor for me to be able to drive for him."
Morgan is hesitant to reveal his full sponsorship package, which includes longtime marketing partner Lucas Oil, Brad Anderson Enterprises, Frymiller Trucking and Forza Coffee.
Morgan plans to make his first runs during an organized test session for Pro Modifieds later this month in Orlando, Fla. The plan for this season is to make drag racing fun again.
To hear Morgan speak, he’s already well on the road to there.
“I love to race but trying to be a competitive Pro Stock car, you spend a million and a half dollars. And there’s just not that kind of money out there,” Morgan explained. “Pro Modified is an exciting class, and I cannot thank Brad enough for this opportunity.”