Team owner-racer Larry Morgan has re-prioritized.

And he’s so giddy about his new situation that even before the season-opening Circle K Winternationals, he joked, “You can tell the rest of the Pro Stock guys to stay home!”

He has dropped his engine-prep business, forged an alliance with Johnny Gray and Gray Motorsports, partnered with fire-suppression-system company FireAde, and ditched his Ford for a Chevy. Morgan has stayed in the Pro Stock class rather than jumping into a Pro Modified car, per the preference of his new sponsor. And he continues to lobby for the factory hot rod racers.

All this contentment translated at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Calif., into a No. 6 start – Morgan’s best qualifying result since the 2011 NHRA Finals at the same track. He won his first elimination round since the previous Winternationals and only his second in 30 events (since the 2013 Dallas race).

After out-qualifying Gray Motorsports brothers Shane and Jonathan Gray at Pomona, Morgan said, “We have had the best weekend. We jokingly are calling ourselves the A team. We started as the C team and ended up as the A team.”

“It’s unbelievable – not only winning a round, but we’re running good, too. I’m so excited about that, and I’m so thankful for (FireAde President and CEO) Ron Thames and for Johnny Gray. My guys and Johnny Gray’s guys are working real hard on my car and on engines,” Morgan said, referring to his alignment with Gray (ironically, his former client) for motors and technical support. “I’ve been blessed this year, I’m telling you.”

What might make it more complete is a victory, which would be his first since he defeated Rickie Jones in the final at the 2009 fall Las Vegas race.

“I’m good,” Morgan said. “Running good gives us all confidence, and we know we can do better, too. I couldn’t be more happy.”

Among his reasons are jettisoning two components of his program that had become hindrances: his Mustang and his engine-supply-and-service business.

Morgan, who for the past few years has given Ford more free publicity than its lack of support for his program has warranted, is driving a Chevy Camaro like the majority of his classmates this season.

“I would say I’m out of the Pro Stock engine business. I don’t want any part of it. It’s gotten out of hand. And employees who really want to work for what it takes to do it, you can’t find ’em anymore,” he said.

“If I can take some money and give it to Johnny Gray and help his program out just a little bit, that’s what I want to do. He’s spent about as much money as anybody could,” Morgan said. “I don’t even know where I could get that kind of money to do it. And I really wouldn’t want the headaches anymore. I went through that for 25 years, and I’m over all that.”

 

With fewer dollars coming in and more going out because he has to pay for engines and their maintenance, Morgan knows having a strong sponsor is imperative even more so now than ever.

His decision to switch automakers was a productive step, he indicated.

“I still get a lot of flack for going to Chevy, throwin’ that Ford down. But I had no support with Ford,” Morgan said. “And I kind of understand where they’re coming from. They don’t have the money to have a full-blown program. I just think that they could have handled it a little bit differently. But it is what it is.”

He chose Chevrolet over Dodge, he said, because “I think Chevy, with them being involved with NHRA, is a good thing, and to be honest with you, I’m not sure if Dodge is that strong anymore. I did talk to some Dodge people about doing something, and I didn’t see the interest in wanting to keep developing what they’re doing out here.

“Everybody feels the same way, that we need fuel injection. Ford, they would like to have their little 5.4 motors out here in Pro Stock. It would serve as a class – if they could put a factory engine in it, like one of our cars, they would be interested in that,” he said.

 

What’s stopping Ford?

“NHRA won’t make a class for it,” Morgan said. “Why do they not want to? I’m not sure.”

Asked if the sanctioning body might be gun-shy since the Pro Stock Truck debacle in 2002, Morgan said, “Lookin’ back at that Pro Stock Truck deal, that was a well-groomed program. And why they threw that out, I have no idea. I looked at that Pro Stock Truck deal, and they had the manufacturers involved, all of ’em. Good personalities – Bobby Panella was out there, Jerry Haas, Larry Kopp . . . The guys who wanted to run Comp [Competition Eliminator] and step up to the next step and couldn’t step up to Pro Stock, that was a good place for them.”

According to Morgan, the Pro Mod class is comfortable with its half-hour television programming, its own funding structure, and the chance to participate on the most visible stage in the sport.

After thinking for a second, he concluded that he thinks the Pro Stock class would benefit if it were to take a similar approach.

“Yes, I do, because our TV is pathetic, and I’ll tell anybody that,” Morgan said. “The reason I say that is I watch it and when they pull up Pro Stock, they’ll put us up – and not even a quarter of the screen. The people that are paying, people who spend a whole lot [of] money, give them a little TV time.”

His passion for Pro Stock is understandable, considering he has been racing in it since 1987.

However, Morgan isn’t wasting his time these days on focusing on what might need changing in the sport. Besides being his class’ biggest cheerleader, he’s an evangelist for marketing partner FireAde, the non-toxic, biodegradable fire suppressant. He’s even game enough to try the company’s tongue-twister that FireAde is an “environmentally friendly formula of film-forming foam.”

He doesn’t stumble over the words when he says, “We’re really looking forward to this year and giving Ron [Thames] the exposure he deserves for the fine products he has.”

FireAde 2000 is the most complete and user-friendly firefighting agent produced in the world, enabling firefighters to extinguish fires thoroughly and in an environmentally friendly manner.

“It’s a good product. It saves clean-up time. His product is magic, I think,” Morgan said. “Every fireman in the United States should have that on their fire trucks, because it works like magic. And when I say that, I’m not kidding you. It just puts a noose around fire.

“I can’t even say how excited I am, because we hooked up with a company that saves lives and is really good for the environment,” he said. “There are so many good things I can say about this product.

“I’ve got to thank Ron Thames, his wife, and his family of employees for coming together and making a deal to help promote his product,” Morgan said. “We’re trying to grow this thing, and we need all the support from people we can get.

“It started with Ron, and then Johnny and his group at Gray Motorsports came on board,” Morgan said. “Then Jerry [Haas] came on with a car, and my guys at home made sure the truck and trailer got done. That’s a great group of people.”

Jerry Haas Race Cars built and delivered Morgan’s new ride in one month during the off-season. And Morgan already has seen success, even if in small increments, from his partnership with Gray.

“Gray Motorsports put together a championship team that has treated us like family,” Morgan said. “We are so proud to be associated with them. Every one of their guys has been over here making sure everything is all right.”

It all came together in the first race of the season, propelling Morgan to three solid passes in rain-shortened qualifying that kept him in the top half of the Pro Stock field for each session at Pomona. And it has rejuvenated Morgan already in the early stages of his 29th season in the NHRA Pro Stock class.

 

“I’m going to race a car that has good horsepower,” the Newark, Ohio, resident said. We’ll be getting our engines from Gray Motorsports, and I’ve got a new Chevrolet Camaro from Jerry Haas, too. I’m more excited about the start of the season than anybody.”

“I’m looking forward to this year,” Morgan said, “because Gray Motorsports has good power, I’ve got a good car, and I have the best sponsor.”

The “rest of the Pro Stock guys” aren’t going to stay home and hand Morgan anything. But now he has better weapons to use in combating them.