Morgan Lucas’ record at Route 66 Raceway is something he knows he can work on during the running of the 10th annual Torco Racing Fuels Nationals, but on his first trip to Chicagoland, it may have been his proudest.
While he was honing his skills in 2003 in the NHRA Lucas Oil series, he arrived at NHRA’s quickest track taking all the sportsman titles that weekend.
“2003 was a great year for me at Chicago, ” said Lucas driving his A-Fuel family owned Alcohol dragster. “We won the Jeg’s All-Star race Saturday and on Sunday, the Nationals along with taking the No. 1 qualifier all in one race. It was a perfect weekend. ”
One thing Lucas can claim in knowing is great surroundings and how that will reflect on the performance of his Lucas Oil dragster. He refers to it as “Mine Shaft” conditions and the Windy City gives the racers that opportunity.
“They can be, ” said Lucas. “Sometimes they’re good and sometimes the humidity is high and that prevents us from making the horsepower we need. It’s a nice facility and when the conditions get right you’re not going to find a faster place to race. ”
“To be honest with you, it’s the layout of the surface and how good the air can get. The original 4.60 Funny Car was run there and the quickest pass ever with Doug Kalitta at 4.420 seconds was recorded in 2004—that ought to tell you something. There’s always been impressive racing going on there and some of the most fun racing I’ve have ever seen has been at Route 66 Raceway. There’s a lot of oxygen in the air with the sea-level conditions not to mention the great diehard drag racing fans we have in the area. ”
With all that Route 66 has to offer, Lucas wants to get his racing program back into competitive form and this could be the weekend to make that all happen for the 23-year old, NHRA’s youngest professional driver.
“I want to get our car back on track, ” Lucas said sternly. “We’ve had some discussions after Topeka with Rahn (Tobler, crew chief) and we’re coming up with some different game plans approaching them in seeing where they might go. I’m hoping for a weekend I’ll always remember. ”
The start of the 10th annual Torco Racing Fuels Nationals begins at Route 66 Raceway on Friday, June 8 with two qualifying sessions starting at 4:30 p. m. (CDT) with a second session at 8:00 p. m. Saturday’s time trials start at 1:00 p. m. for the nitro classes followed by a second session at 4:30 p. m. The race starts promptly at 11 a. m. on Sunday, June 10.
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