Last year at the O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries, Morgan Lucas and his GEICO-backed Top Fuel dragster went all the way to the final round and beat then-teammate Shawn Langdon for the first trophy of the season. This year, Lucas returns to Auto Club Raceway at Pomona with a new partner in crime – second-generation Top Fuel driver Brandon Bernstein – and a renewed fury for success.
 
Lifelong pals Lucas and Langdon enjoyed many memorable times at the racetrack while teammates, but a definite highlight of their partnership was one year ago – at last season's opener in Pomona – when they earned the opportunity to square off in the final for the first time.
 
"I was excited for both of us," recalled Lucas. "Going into the final, we both had pretty equal race cars, and both of us had been driving well that day. A lot of things just fell into place on both sides, and it was one of those deals where we weren't really looking at the other guy going, 'OK, I'm really nervous about your car.' We were just excited to get to race a good friend because you know at the end of it, you're going to be laughing and having a fun time regardless of who won or lost."
 
It was the fourth time that the two had butted heads during eliminations and the first time in the final. Langdon had the starting-line advantage, but Lucas' 3.83 got the win light as his opponent's engine gave up at the finish line. For the first time in his career, Lucas left an event with the points lead in his pocket.
 
"It was significant for everyone," said Lucas. "But mainly, it was a mission that we always wanted to accomplish and that we finally executed: an all-team final. I don't think anybody left feeling like a loser that day."

At the conclusion of the 2011 season, Langdon was offered the opportunity to join the Al-Anabi Racing team as the driver of the car previously piloted by three-time NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Top Fuel champion Larry Dixon. After spending his first three years of Professional drag racing at Morgan Lucas Racing, the decision to make a move did not likely come easy for Langdon, but to Lucas, it made sense.
 
"It's fine, really," said Lucas. "Shawn had a great opportunity, and we encouraged him to make the move. How do you tell somebody that they shouldn't go race for Alan Johnson?
 
"We're still friends; we just get to race each other from a different vantage point now. We're still doing exactly what we talked about doing when we were kids – racing with each other. Back then, we never anticipated that we would have a chance to race with each other on the same team, it just happened that way, and it was a lot of fun. This doesn't mean it won't happen again in the future; it's just how things are laid out now."

There has been an awful lot of modification going on at Morgan Lucas Racing during the off-season. Langdon's departure and Bernstein's arrival were only a couple of slices of the pie as crew chief changes were implemented for both cars; Aaron Brooks and Rod Centorbi will tune the GEICO dragster driven by Lucas, and Joe Barlam and John DeFillippis were promoted to crew chief and assistant on the MavTV/Lucas Oil rail to be driven by Bernstein.
 
According to Lucas, the cars should now be set up identically for the first time, enabling what he believes will be a more effective sharing of information and, hopefully, success.
 
Already there is notable progress. During a test session in West Palm Beach, Fla., Bernstein made a series of runs in the 3.82 to 3.87 range, and Lucas made hits ranging from 3.79 (a career best) to 3.84.
 
"I think I had three different career-best runs down there actually," said Lucas. "It was just exciting, and I don't think I've had the chutes out that much in a test session in my life. It makes me genuinely excited to get to the first race of the year – especially because Pomona is a racetrack I consider home. I grew up here and loved coming out and seeing the mountains in the background and just knowing that I was somewhere comfortable.
 
"I see a lot of success for this team in the future. Brandon brings a lot of good things, and he has such an awesome personality. He knows how to handle himself in all settings at the racetrack, from hanging out with the fans and talking to the media to just being a professional drag racer. I've said it before, but he's the complete package, and on top of that, he's generally a lot of fun. We all hang out, laugh, joke, and have a good time. I think that's what our team really needed, somebody who could come in and lighten it up a little bit. Plus, he has a great resume, so you know he can drive.
 
"Believe me, I'm ready for this season to begin. I think everybody on the GEICO team is more pumped up to go racing than they have been in a long time."