ABINGDON, Va. — Larry McClure fielded NASCAR entries that won three Daytona 500s and the Bristol Night Race, died Wednesday at Johnston Memorial Hospital. He was 81.
McClure co-owned Morgan McClure Motorsports with Tim Morgan and Jerry McClure from 1983 to 2007. They competed in over 700 NASCAR Cup Series races, capturing 14 victories over 25 seasons.
His death comes just over a week after longtime NASCAR team owner Charlie Henderson of Abingdon died.
Ernie Irvan collected the team’s first victory in the 1990 Bristol night race, holding off Rusty Wallace.
Irvan captured the team’s first Daytona 500 victory in 1991. He was responsible for seven of the team’s victories, including four on superspeedways.
When Irvan moved on, McClure hired Sterling Marlin, who six Cup Series wins, including back to back Daytona 500s in 1994 and 1995.
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Bobby Hamilton earned the team’s last victory at Martinsville in 1998.
McClure and Morgan also owned a series of Morgan-McClure auto dealerships in Southwest Virginia.
McClure co-owned Morgan McClure Motorsports with Tim Morgan and Jerry McClure from 1983-2012. The team fielded cars in the NASCAR Cup Series for some of the top names in the sport, including Mark Martin, Ernie Irvan and Sterling Marlin. Morgan McClure ran 703 cup series races, winning 14 times. The teams biggest wins included three Daytona 500 victories and a win at the Bristol Night Race in 1991.
McClure and Morgan also owned several car dealerships across Southwest Virginia.