Photo:Morice McMillin in action at Fram Autolite DragwayWith a fresh combination of equipment in the LG-TengTools-Hauraki top alcohol funny car and just a handful of high speed runs completed, Hamilton’s Morice McMillin has both the confidence and desire to take on the big guns at the Century Batteries Power Series, the three-round national drag racing championship.
The first round at Fram Autolite Raceway, midway between Auckland and Hamilton, takes place on 6 February and sees the 24-year-old fully prepared to take another step closer to the highly experienced and well funded racers leading the Castrol Edge top alcohol division.
McMillin signed with LG Motorsport this season, bringing the well-known brand imagery of LG Electronics and Radio Hauraki to sit alongside the logo of his team’s major sponsor TengTools on the Dodge Avenger funny car.
“Competing in New Zealand ’s fastest motorsport certainly has its dangers and challenges,” says the talented young racer who started racing at the age of eight in junior dragsters.
“But we take things very much in our stride. Compared to several other teams, we’re all pretty young, up against guys who have been racing at this level for 20-plus years. Every season we keep learning fast and, this year, we’re out to catch some of the bigger names of the sport, that’s for sure.”
McMillin finished third in the national championship in his debut season and secured a new quarter-mile national record for the funny car class with his best time of 6.66 sec, which saw him hit a top speed of 339 km/h (211 mph).
“We have always been behind horsepower-wise over the last two years, so with some new equipment this year we hope to make that gap smaller. We know there is a lot of hard work in front of us, but I also know the team is more capable of making our mark in the championship hunt!”
Over the past decade, McMillin has quickly gone from a self-described annoying young teenager asking all the questions to a respected competitor in the class.
“I do have to pinch myself sometimes when suiting up to race guys who I have looked up to for years. All we need to do now is beat them!”
