Fresh off a semifinal finish in the GEICO/Lucas Oil dragster at professional drag racing's season opener and riding high in third place in the Full Throttle Series Top Fuel standings, Morgan Lucas is looking for more success at this weekend's 28th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird International Raceway.
"I've got a lot of family and friends out in Phoenix," Lucas said. "It's a cool place to visit and a cool place to race. I can’t tell you how excited I am to get back out there and run this GEICO dragster, especially after the way it ran this past weekend."
The team took bold steps forward during the offseason, and the changes are already being noticed by others in the sport. Lucas' crew, who helped their man to the No. 1 qualifying position in Pomona, were presented with the Full Throttle Hard Working Crew Award for their efforts.
"We made some good decisions with personnel during the winter and thanks to a lot of input from a lot of good people we're off to a good start," Lucas said. "They guys came into Pomona excited about racing and it showed in the way we performed. That's what it’s all about for us right now – keeping that momentum up and the positivity going.
"I don’t know too many teams that only make it to the semis and still win the Hard Working Crew Award. It's a testament on how well we ran in qualifying and how big of a turnaround the car has made."
Before heading to Phoenix, Lucas took team sponsor Toyota up on an offer to go to a road course and test drive some high performance Lexus vehicles, including the Lexus LFA supercar.
"Toyota really raised the bar for us this week by letting us go out there and run those cars," Lucas said. "It also was a great opportunity to hang out with some of my friends from the racetrack and do something totally different than we ever get to do.
"It was really exciting and I'm fortunate to have had the opportunity. It kept me geared up for the race weekend ahead of us."
Qualifying for the NHRA Arizona Nationals get under way at 1:30 p.m. MST on Friday at Firebird International Speedway with two sessions. Qualifying picks back up on Saturday with another two sessions starting at noon. Eliminations begin at 11 a.m. on Sunday. ESPN2 will air the qualifying show at 6 p.m. and the eliminations show at 7 p.m. Sunday.
Showing posts with label morgan lucas racing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label morgan lucas racing. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Lead foot intact, Bernstein takes MAVTV dragster to Phoenix
Before Brandon Bernstein and his wife Tracey had their first child, the professional drag racer drove a sporty Lexus ISF as his daily driver. When his daughter, Lyla, arrived Bernstein had to go with a more kid-friendly ride.
So when the driver of the MAVTV/Lucas Oil Top Fuel dragster was asked by team sponsor Toyota to put a fleet of high performance Lexus cars, including the Lexus LFA, though their paces this past Monday at the Auto Club Speedway road course, the answer was an immediate yes.
"That LFA is a supercar," Bernstein said. "It's incredible. The throttle response, the power, the brakes on it are immense – it's so much fun to drive. Toyota was so great for letting us do that. It was an honor to drive a car like the LFA.
"Those events are the best. It gets us out of our normal drag racing mode. I feel blessed and special to have been asked."
Bernstein has also been having fun driving his weekend ride, the 8,000 horsepower MAVTV rail. The team had a strong opening weekend after qualifying in the top five and making it into the quarterfinal round of eliminations in Pomona last week. They are looking to take the next step forward at this weekend's 28th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird International Raceway.
"We're real excited about Phoenix because we know we've got a great racecar," Bernstein said. "(Crew chief) Joe Barlam and the guys are doing a great job. The MAVTV car is going to be ready to rock-and-roll."
Bernstein, who has won twice in Phoenix, including his first win as a pro in 2003, said the Firebird track can be tricky, but he's glad to be back for its more familiar early-season place on the schedule.
"The track gets better as the weekend goes along," Bernstein said. "It's usually pretty rough in the beginning, but I've had some great success in Phoenix, and you always like to go back to tracks where you've done well at in the past. It gives you confidence to go to a track you have won at before.
"Last year was just weird going to Phoenix in the fall. This feels more natural, I guess you can say."
Qualifying for the NHRA Arizona Nationals get under way at 1:30 p.m. MST on Friday at Firebird International Speedway with two sessions. Qualifying picks back up on Saturday with another two sessions starting at noon. Eliminations begin at 11 a.m. on Sunday. ESPN2 will air the qualifying show at 6 p.m. and the eliminations show at 7 p.m. Sunday.
So when the driver of the MAVTV/Lucas Oil Top Fuel dragster was asked by team sponsor Toyota to put a fleet of high performance Lexus cars, including the Lexus LFA, though their paces this past Monday at the Auto Club Speedway road course, the answer was an immediate yes.
"That LFA is a supercar," Bernstein said. "It's incredible. The throttle response, the power, the brakes on it are immense – it's so much fun to drive. Toyota was so great for letting us do that. It was an honor to drive a car like the LFA.
"Those events are the best. It gets us out of our normal drag racing mode. I feel blessed and special to have been asked."
Bernstein has also been having fun driving his weekend ride, the 8,000 horsepower MAVTV rail. The team had a strong opening weekend after qualifying in the top five and making it into the quarterfinal round of eliminations in Pomona last week. They are looking to take the next step forward at this weekend's 28th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird International Raceway.
"We're real excited about Phoenix because we know we've got a great racecar," Bernstein said. "(Crew chief) Joe Barlam and the guys are doing a great job. The MAVTV car is going to be ready to rock-and-roll."
Bernstein, who has won twice in Phoenix, including his first win as a pro in 2003, said the Firebird track can be tricky, but he's glad to be back for its more familiar early-season place on the schedule.
"The track gets better as the weekend goes along," Bernstein said. "It's usually pretty rough in the beginning, but I've had some great success in Phoenix, and you always like to go back to tracks where you've done well at in the past. It gives you confidence to go to a track you have won at before.
"Last year was just weird going to Phoenix in the fall. This feels more natural, I guess you can say."
Qualifying for the NHRA Arizona Nationals get under way at 1:30 p.m. MST on Friday at Firebird International Speedway with two sessions. Qualifying picks back up on Saturday with another two sessions starting at noon. Eliminations begin at 11 a.m. on Sunday. ESPN2 will air the qualifying show at 6 p.m. and the eliminations show at 7 p.m. Sunday.
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