It’s July 1988, Daytona’s Firecracker 400, and the air’s electric with the roar of engines and the smell of burning rubber. Larry McClure’s Morgan-McClure Motorsports was in the thick of it, their No. 4 Kodak Oldsmobile, driven by Rick Wilson, locked in a fender-banging duel with Bill Elliott. Although they lost that race and finished runner-up after a slingshot strategy went south, this race right here set up the stage for Morgan-McClure Motorsports’ underdog story, and Daytona International Speedway became their stomping ground.

“It left a bad taste in my mouth, but at least I knew we were starting to get better,” McClure stated in an interview with Cup Scene, and from there on, the team went on to win eight superspeedway races. From finishing 40th in their Cup Series debut to racking up back-to-back wins at Talladega Superspeedway, McClure’s team scripted a powerful underdog story that made a place in the heart of the race fans. But unfortunately, the man leading this fairytale NASCAR story has completed his last laps of his life.

On Wednesday morning, Larry McClure passed away at Johnston Memorial Hospital in Abingdon, Virginia, leaving the NASCAR world gutted. The Southwest Virginia native wasn’t just a team owner; he was a dreamer who turned a small-town shop into a giant-slaying legend. From 1983 to 2012, McClure, alongside Tim Morgan and Jerry McClure, built Morgan-McClure Motorsports into a force. They gave rides to icons like Mark Martin, Ernie Irvan, and Sterling Marlin, racking up 14 Cup wins, 13 poles, and 703 races.

Their shining moments? Three Daytona 500 triumphs with Irvan’s in 1991, Marlin’s back-to-back in 1994 and 1995 and a 1991 Bristol Night Race victory that still gets old-timers misty-eyed. That No. 4 Kodak Chevy, screaming down superspeedways, was NASCAR’s underdog spirit made real, proof that guts and grit could outshine big-money teams.

Life wasn’t all checkered flags for McClure. He and Morgan ran car dealerships across Southwest Virginia, building a legacy off the track. But in 2008, a tax fraud charge over $269,000 in unreported ARCA car funds landed him an 18-month jail sentence. It was a gut punch, yet McClure’s story wasn’t defined by the fall; it was about the comeback, the same resilience he poured into his team. As uncle to driver Eric McClure, who left us in 2021, Larry carried family pride through every triumph and heartbreak.

Morgan-McClure folded in 2012, but their story’s still alive in every barroom tale of that ‘88 Firecracker finish or Marlin’s Daytona glory. McClure’s passing feels like losing a piece of NASCAR’s soul, the era of family-run teams, of paint-trading battles under Southern lights. His legacy is etched in the sport’s history, a reminder of what makes racing more than a sport: it’s family, heart, and the courage to chase the checkered flag, no matter the odds. And now, fans have started pouring their condolences and love online on his passing.

Fans grieve McClure’s loss with heartfelt tributes

One fan went a trip down memory lane, describing his memory of the McClure “RIP to a hell of a team owner. MMM were past their peak when I got into racing, but I still remember how clean the State Water Heaters ride looked. Larry’s team gave me a chunk of Ward Burton’s shredded tire when I was 7… the smell of burnt rubber stayed on my hands for days.” In 2007, MMM’s No. 4, with Ward Burton and State Water Heaters livery, was a visual gem despite a 47th-place points finish. Handing out tire chunks to kids was classic NASCAR, and that rubber’s stench is a time machine for fans.

Another chimed in saying “Him and Charlie Henderson back to back. Tough couple of weeks for the racing community here in my area.” Losing McClure and local figure Charlie Henderson so close together has hit Southwest Virginia hard, a double blow that’s got race shops and barstools heavy with grief. Henderson, like McClure was a fighter, and he helped drivers like Parker Kligerman, who raced for his team in the Truck Series.

“Just this morning I looked through my diecasts and stopped to admire the Kodak #4,” said another fan. The Kodak No. 4, with its Daytona 500 triumphs, is a die-cast treasure, sparking nostalgia for MMM’s ‘90s dominance that fans still hold dear. Although a lot of NASCAR fans associate the #4 with Stewart-Haas Racing and Kevin Harvick, this was originally a Morgan-McClure Motorsports number, and then it got transferred to SHR in 2014.

Hermie Sadler chimed in with a wholesome story about McClure, “I send my deepest condolences to the family of Larry McClure. Many years ago I went to Chicagoland with one car and one engine. My engine blew in practice. He gave me an engine to run. He said, “if you out qualify my car, you can race that engine for free.” RIP 🙏🙏🙏,” this type of comradery is rare in the modern era of the sport.