Darren Morgan regains lead in the ANDRA Top Fuel Championship
Photos courtesy Fred Dwyer.
Heading into the 2013 Nitro Champs the goals were simple for Darren Morgan Racing; be consistent, go rounds and regain the championship lead.
At the conclusion of racing the team put a big tick next to all 3 goals and Darren Morgan now leads the ANDRA Top Fuel Championship over nearest rival Phil Lamattina, 605 points to 551.
“Wow! What a great weekend of drag racing,” exclaimed Darren Morgan. “We went into the Nitro Champs with a plan and to see it come together like it did was just awesome. As a budget operation it’s really gratifying to perform so well against some of our more fancied rivals from both Australia and the US.”
Returning to the traditional eliminations format meant the team could test a few theories during qualifying which really paid dividends, taking the number 1 position with a 4.77 pass at only 269 mph.
During eliminations Morgan rattled off three 4 second passes in a row to not only take the win but also set low ET and top speed of the meeting. The quickest and fastest pass came in round 2 with a 4.71 at 318 mph.
For tuner Ben Patterson it was a perfect weekend. “In the last few meetings we’ve shown good form and at the Nitro Champs things fell into place. Previously we’ve struggled on a cold track, but work on the clutch package meant we were one of the few teams to get from A to B consistently. The car responded well to the changes we made and gives us a great deal of confidence going into the next round of the Championship.”
The next stop for Darren Morgan Racing will be the 2013 Winternationals from Willowbank Raceway, June 7 to 10. Heralded as the largest drag race in the world outside of North America, the Winternationals sees over 500 professional and sportsman racers do battle for the converted ANDRA Gold Christmas Trees.
For Darren Morgan it’s another opportunity to perform in front of thousands of fans and extended the lead in the ANDRA Top Fuel Championship.
With conditions similar to the Nitro Champs the team will be looking for consistent 4.60s in what is likely to be a strong field of Top Fuelers.
Darren Morgan Racing would like to thank their sponsors, K Trans WA, Shannons Insurance and Victorian American Imports along with their many associate partners.
Current ANDRA Top Fuel Championship Points
- Darren Morgan 605
- Phil Lamattina 551
- Steve Read 287
- Damien Harris 257
- Mark Sheehan 184
- Allan Dobson 182
- Luke Shepherd 87
- Terry Sainty 87
- Larry Dixon 72
- Martin Stamatis 63
- Phil Read 47
- Tommy Johnson Jr 45
