For Nitro Joe Morrison, the veteran multi-class professional drag racer, NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series national events are about on-track performance and off-track fan interaction. This past weekend at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals the Herzhauser Funny Car narrowly missed qualifying for one of the quickest Funny Car fields of the season, but Morrison took the win for his fan interaction opportunities throughout the three-day race. He was racing with support from the Right2Breathe® Project, PennGrade1 and CarTimeDover.com. Also, this weekend Before & After Painting, wrapped up the “Livin’ the Dream” two-race series with major branding on the Funny Car.
“This has been an amazing two week stretch for me,” said Morrison. “We raced in Columbus last week and Norwalk this weekend with this great ‘Livin the Dream’ Funny Car. We had a tough weekend, but we made the most of it. I appreciate the opportunity from Herzhauser Racing group.”
Friday’s schedule was adjusted to avoid inclement weather and the Herzhauser team opted to take their best shot at qualifying on Saturday with two qualifying sessions available. In the first session Morrison’s 12,000-horsepower Funny Car smoked the tires right off the starting line and still coasted to the finish line 1000 feet down track with a time of 11.677 seconds at 95.58 mph. In the final session needing to post a time quicker than 4.134 seconds, Morrison made almost a full run before his blower belt expired, robbing his motor of much needed power and slowing him to a run of 5.160 seconds at 151.41 mph. He finished qualifying No. 17 just outside the quick 16.
“We spent a lot of time in the Right2Breathe display and on the NHRA stage,” said Morrison. “That is really what this program is about, and I want to thank the Cleveland Clinic for continuing to support our program. We changed a lot of lives this weekend and we will continue to spread the word about being proactive with your lung health.”
Off the track Morrison was one of the busiest drivers on the property. On Friday and Saturday, he spent significant time in the Right2Breathe® Project tent with the Cleveland Clinic as well as NDD Medical and BluZone Health. Morrison was part of the team of people encouraging fans to participate in the “Put Your Lungs on the Dyno” Lung Health Screening. Right2Breathe, a New Jersey based 501(c)(3) non-profit, in collaboration with the team of healthcare professionals and support from Sanofi Pharmaceutical, offered onsite lung health screenings and education to the estimated 70,000+ fans and racers who attended the Summit Racing Equipment Nationals.
On Saturday Morrison was one of the featured drivers on the NHRA stage with NHRA personality and WFO radio host Joe Castello. The duo talked about Morrison’s racing season, the Right2Breathe program and his passion for helping people. Following the stage show Morrison hosted Pro Stock Motorcycle world champion Richard Gadson, 2025 NHRA Rookie of the Year Spencer Hyde and accomplished Top Alcohol Dragster driver Melanie Johnson in the Right2Breathe display for a fan autograph session.
“I had a great time with Richard, Spencer and Melanie signing for the fans on Saturday morning,” said Morrison. “The fans loved seeing these drivers and I appreciate all the support we get from our fellow competitors and the NHRA.”
On race day even though Morrison was on the sidelines he still was a part of the first round racing action. During eliminations he was interviewed on the starting line about his work with the Cleveland Clinic and the Right2Breathe program. Throughout race day fans were encouraged to stop by the display for an autograph and to get their free lung screening.
Morrison is looking at his future plans to see when he can return to the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series, possibly for the historic U.S. Nationals Labor Day weekend. The veteran driver is balancing his Right2Breathe project obligations with racing opportunities in a variety of professional racing series.
This story was originally published on July 1, 2026. 
