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NASCAR BGN: Cope and Xpress Announce 1999 Schedule

2 December 1998

Derrike Cope
MOORESVILLE, N.C. - Derrike Cope will drive the No. 61 Xpress Motorsports Pontiac in a 20-race NASCAR Busch Series, Grand National Division schedule in 1999. The season for Cope and the Xpress Motorsports team will begin at the NAPA 300 at the famous Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway on Feb. 13.

"Actually the scheduled 20 races is broken down into two portions," said team manager Dave Fuge. "We are able to race in the first 12 Busch Series, Grand National Division events, without interfering with Derrike's Winston Cup commitment to Bahari Racing.

"After the 12th race (Richmond), we will take a look at where we are at and see if we are going to expand beyond the 20 events," continued Fuge. "If we are in a strong spot as far as team owner's points or if one of our sponsorship packages has evolved we would certainly look at continuing on with the full schedule with Derrike and a different driver for the races that Derrike can't do."

The team is actively seeking sponsorship with a variety of packages under consideration. An extensive testing schedule is set to begin for the team in January.

1999 Derrike Cope/Xpress Motorsports
Busch Series, Grand National Division Schedule

Date Venue
Feb. 13 Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Fla.
Feb. 20 North Carolina Speedway, Rockingham, N.C.
Mar. 6 Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, Nev.
Mar. 13 Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton, Ga.
Mar. 20 Darlington Raceway, Darlington, S.C.
Mar. 27 Texas Motor Speedway, Fort Worth, Texas
Apr. 3 Nashville Speedway USA, Nashville, Tenn.
Apr. 10 Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol, Tenn.
Apr. 24 Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega, Ala.
May 1 California Speedway, Fontana, Calif.
May 8 New Hampshire International Speedway, Loudon, N.H.
May 14 Richmond International Raceway, Richmond, Va.
May 29 Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, N.C.
July 31 Gateway International Raceway, Madison, Ill.
Aug. 21 Michigan Speedway, Brooklyn, Mich.
Sept. 4 Darlington Raceway, Darlington, S.C.
Sept. 10 Richmond International Raceway, Richmond, Va.
Oct. 9 Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, N.C.
Oct. 31 Memphis Motorsports Park, Memphis, Tenn.
Nov. 13 Miami-Dade Homestead Motorsports Complex, Homestead, Fla.

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