Quirky finish for Morgan Lucas and his E3 Spark Plugs Top Fuel team
ATLANTA – Morgan Lucas took a Sunday morning drive down Atlanta Dragway in his E3 Spark Plugs Top Fuel 
dragster convinced he had won his opening-round race against J.R. Todd, but despite double-stepping during launch, Todd managed to steal away the victory in one of the oddest results in Lucas’ career.
“I clearly heard him double-step the throttle, so I knew he had red-lighted and I won at the Tree,” Lucas said. “Our E3 Spark Plugs dragster was humming down through there but did start to spin the tires past half-track. Rather than risk blowing the motor, I just clicked it off and coasted through. Then I get to the turn-off and they are pointing to J.R. I was stunned. He didn’t red-light.
“I would have done exactly what I did every time. I have never known a driver to not red-light when they double-step the throttle. He looked over at me at the top end and just shrugged his shoulders. He was as surprised as I was. He knew he got away with one right there.”
In most instances, when I driver hits the throttle before the Tree flashes he will try to quickly get off the gas and back on again to save the pass, a technique called double-stepping. Usually, the first stab of the throttle causes the car to move forward enough that they break out of the staging beams too early and red-light, an automatic disqualification.
After checking with the chief starter, it turns out on this rare occasion Todd’s car did not move at all on the first hit and he was able to gain a lead after a huge .066-second reaction-time deficit and take the win light. Todd posted a 3.911 at 326.32 mph to Lucas’ 4.224 at 196.87 mph.
“I’m so mad at myself right now,” Lucas said. “I feel like I threw one away. I wasn’t spinning enough that I couldn’t have legged it out and won, which is what I should have done, in hindsight. The car was holding the track, just spinning a little bit. I just didn’t want to risk destroying a motor when I thought we didn’t have to.
“I’m so bummed for the E3 Spark Plugs group. They have been so cool all weekend and we really wanted to show them a win. We’ll have to try again, I suppose.”
Lucas is running a limited, seven-race schedule this year and will likely not race again until early June in Englishtown, N.J.
