Coca-Cola 300

April 4, 1998
Roanoke, TX

In first round qualifying, Derrike was the 28th car on the track and produced a time of 30.476 and speed of 177.189. This was good enough at the time for 10th position and at the end of the round the Kraft Monte Carlo was left in 13th position. Unfortunately since Derrike reinjured his ribs in a crash in Winston Cup qualifying, he was unable to drive the car and Morgan Shepherd stepped in to drive.

"If it wasn't for bad luck, we would have no luck at all," said Co-Owner and Crew Chief Tim Weiss when driver Derrike Cope crashed into the Turn 2 wall while attempting to qualify for the Texas 500. Cope suffered the same broken ribs, hurt shoulder, and severe soreness that he did when he slammed the wall in Atlanta. However, this time the injuries are much more painful.

Prior to his accident, Cope had his best qualifying position of the year in the #92 Chevrolet. With a speed of 177.189 mph and time of 30.476 seconds on the 1.5 mile Texas Motor Speedway, Cope managed to capture the 13th position for the Coca-Cola 300. The number 13 was bad luck for the Kraft Foods team as they were scrambling to find a stand-in driver within 24 hours of race time.

As the start of the Coca-Cola 300 drew near, Morgan Shepherd took the wheel of the Kraft Foods Chevy despite a badly burned left foot. Since the #92 team started with a different driver than they qualified with, NASCAR forced them to go to the back of the pack. Shepherd and the Kraft Foods team experienced problems with handling and the engine throughout the race. Shepherd fell a lap down as the crew made adjustments to improve the car's handling. As Shepherd avoided numerous crashes, he was able to gain positions. The Kraft Foods team had to settle for 32nd due to exiting the race on lap 154 with engine problems. "We were off on the chassis to start with," commented Shepherd. "We kept changing things and finally got a little better. Then the engine just went flat. Must have been a broken valve spring."

The #92 Kraft Foods team will have two consecutive weekends off as they look forward to the Touchstone Energy 300 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 25th. The outlook for Derrike Cope returning in Talladega is doubtful. However, everyone wishes him a speedy recovery.

Jeff Cope was at Ft. Worth during the weekend and provided live reports.