NHRA Driver Larry Morgan - Ford Racing Interview

This Week In Ford Racing

Larry Morgan took a big step for the Ford Racing Pro Stock NHRA Full Throttle Series program last weekend in Norwalk, Ohio. Morgan became the first driver to take a Ford to a final round in the ultra-competitive category since Scott Geoffrion did it with his Ford Escort ZX2 on June 15, 2003 at National Trail Raceway, near Columbus, Ohio. In Norwalk, Morgan, who qualified seventh, took out the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds on his way to the finals, where he faced the front-runner for the rookie of the year award, Vincent Nobile. Morgan narrowly missed earning his first win, driving his Ford Mustang to a 6.657-second pass at 209.30 mph to Nobile’s 6.615 at 208.26.

Pro Stock Driver Larry Morgan

Photo by: Ted Rossino

This was Morgan’s third final round appearance in five years at Norwalk, the track the Central Ohio native considers his home track.

WHAT IS IT ABOUT NORWALK FOR YOU? “I test here all the time. I love this place. I love the Baders (the track owners). I guess it’s close to Ford, Summit. They’re a sponsor of mine, and you know what? I can’t say. I’ve been to the final three times here now. I just wish I could have won. The Ford representatives were here and Summit sponsors this race and it sure would’ve been nice to win. But we did a really good job. I’m real happy with what transpired this weekend. We qualified seventh and we’re moving forward with the Ford Mustang. We’re just looking forward to bigger and better things happening here in the future.”

THIS WAS A HISTORIC ROUND FOR FORD. HOW DOES IT FEEL TO KNOW YOU WERE A PART OF HISTORY? “That’s good. You know what? Scott Geoffrion was a good racer. And it’s been a long time since Ford has won, and that was with Bob Glidden (on May 21, 1995 in Englishtown, N.J.) and he’s a good friend of mine. It would’ve been nice (to win in Norwalk). And in Ohio, Bob Glidden, won I don’t know how many times in Ohio. I guess it’s something with Ohio and Ford. I need to have NHRA have all the races in Ohio.”

WHAT’S THE NEXT STEP FOR YOU? WE’RE ON OUR WAY TO CHICAGO. HOW WILL YOU USE THE NEXT TWO WEEKS? “We’re working on some new engine parts. I’m really looking forward to that more than anything. I know leaving here on a good note is a good thing for Ford and ourselves and Lucas and Summit and all the people that help us, but we’re working on some new engine parts that we really think will help us move a little bit further forward.”

DESCRIBE THE HOMETOWN CROWD IN NORWALK, WITH ALL OF THE FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT VISITED YOU AND CHEERED YOU ON: “The crowd here is unbelievable. There are so many fans here. This is probably one of the biggest fan bases for Ford and our team all over the country. The fans are just so great here. I wish we would have won.”