Story By: ELON WERNER / JOE MORRISON RACING – READING, PA – In just his second career start in the nitro Funny Car class on the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Joe Morrison qualified his Right2Breathe Dodge Funny Car and almost posted the upset of the race in the opening round.
Through two days of qualifying Morrison continued to get experience manhandling his 11,000-horsepower Right2Breathe Funny Car that is owned and tuned by veteran Paul Smith. Through four rounds of qualifying Morrison entered race day as the No. 12 Funny Car on the property and a head-to-head matchup with two-time world champion and John Force replacement driver Jack Beckman.
“We were so excited to see this Right2Breathe Funny Car continue to make improvements on the track,” said Morrison, who has raced Top Fuel and fuel altered throughout his career. “I am getting more comfortable in the race car. These are not easy racecars to drive and with every run I learn something new. We came out and made some good runs on Friday and that gave the whole team confidence going into the weekend.”
On race day Morrison knew he would have to be at his best if he was going to try and get the round win over Beckman. During the Top Fuel elimination round that preceded Funny Car there were several upsets and the track conditions proved to be tricky for all the crew chiefs. Beckman and Morrison launched and were charging towards the finish line side by side. Beckman began to haze his tires and Morrison was pulling away from the eventual Pep Boys runner-up when the Right2Breathe Funny Car began moving towards the center line. Morrison was furiously working to keep his Funny Car in his lane, but at the last second the nose of his Funny Car clipped a timing cone for a centerline disqualification.
“That was a tough loss,” said Morrison. “We were winning that race until we weren’t. I was turning that steering wheel as hard as I could. I stayed on the throttle as long as I could because I could hear Beckman beside me, so I knew he was close. Paul told me afterwards he was glad I stayed on the throttle, which means a lot. You want to have the fire and courage to win. It’s not easy. We didn’t hurt the car too bad, and we’ll learn from this.”
Throughout the weekend off the track Morrison was busy working with the Right2Breathe organization and two additional instrumental companies, the Temple Lung Center and Chiesi USA. All three groups will have a specific mission at Maple Grove Raceway with Morrison leading the charge as brand ambassador.
For Morrison, partnering with Right2Breathe has been a life-changing experience for him and for NHRA fans. One ongoing example of this partnership is the free onsite lung health evaluations Right2Breathe has provided fans giving them the chance to ‘Put Their Lungs on the Dyno.” As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Right2 Breathe is celebrating their 10-year anniversary in 2024, and they have provided lung screenings and lung health education at the Reading NHRA Nationals five times since 2017. Their mission is to provide free lung screening for people at risk for lung disease as well as provide education and support for people already living with lung disease.
Joining Right2Breathe at Maple Grove Raceway were a several medical professionals from the Temple Lung Center who provided free lung screenings, lung health education, and promoted their “Temple Healthy Chest Initiative” to help provide early diagnosis of lung disease to save lives.
“The Temple Healthy Chest Initiative is dedicated to bringing essential chest health screenings and personalized care directly to the community,” said Melissa Liverpool, BSN, RN Supervisor, Nurse Navigator, Temple Healthy Chest Initiative. “We’re excited to partner with Right2Breathe at Maple Grove Raceway, allowing us to bring these vital services directly to NHRA fans, where early detection can truly make a difference.”
One of the other key supporters at this event was Chiesi USA. The company’s primary focus is on improving quality of life for patients, their families, their communities, and society through innovating new medicines and returning value to the communities in which it operates.
“At Chiesi USA, we recognize achieving better health outcomes begins with raising awareness in the communities where patients are. We must meet patients in the community alongside organizations like Right2Breathe to help raise awareness about lung health and promote access to care for all,” said Richard Smith, Vice President and Business Unit Head, US AIR, Chiesi USA. “Today will be a success if our efforts help even one person in need to connect with respiratory care resources that could help him or her on their journey.”
While the on-track results won’t be reflected in the wins and losses column Morrison knows that the impact from Funny Car performance will carry over from Maple Grove Raceway. The veteran driver has not ruled out a return to the track in 2024 but he for sure will return in 2025 to continue to develop his Funny Car driving skills.
Qualifying Results
Q1: No Time; Qual. 16
Q2: 4.339 sec, 215.72 mph; Qual. 13
Q3: 4.257 sec, 230.96 mph; Qual. 14
Q4: No Time; Qual. 14
Bonus Points: 0
First Round
Jack Beckman, Yorba Linda, Calif., PEAK Chevrolet Camaro, (.083), No Time, def. Joe Morrison, Flemington, NJ., Right2Breathe Dodge Charger, (.118), No Time, DNQ-Centerline