Early advantage doesn’t hold for Lucas Oil pro Morgan

LAS VEGAS – Always looking to make a statement, Pro Stock driver Larry Morgan was ready to cause an upset during the first round of eliminations at the NHRA Toyota Nationals on Sunday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Dropping a .017-second reaction time, Morgan caught No. 2 Shane Gray completely off-guard.

Unfortunately, though, the Lucas Oil Ford Mustang got sideways part way down the track, slowing Morgan’s momentum and allowing Gray to turn on the win light with a pass of 6.592 seconds at 209.20 mph.

“I could’ve probably done some damage had I made a run,” Morgan said. “But that didn’t happen, so we’ll move on to Pomona. We’re saving the best for last: the Finals. We’re going for it.”

Morgan had a .065-second advantage on the Christmas Tree, but his Ford kicked sideways not long after he let the clutch out, losing his immediate advantage. His pass of 7.137 seconds at 161.88 mph wasn’t enough to hold off Gray.

A broken fuel regulator was the culprit, feeding too much fuel to the engine, which overpowered the racetrack.

“It blew the tires off,” Morgan said. “A fuel regulator had been sticking and had been trying to flood the motor. Just missed it. It wasn’t anybody’s fault. It just happens.”

Morgan will look to finish the 2014 season on a high note when he travels to Pomona, Calif., Nov. 13-16 for the Auto Club NHRA Finals at Auto Club Raceway.

“I’d sure like to win a few more rounds before the season is over,” Morgan said. “We haven’t had the best season, but we’ve had some fun and we’ll keep having fun. Then it’s on to 2015, and we’ll have some fun next year, too. We’ll be all right.”