ROANOKE TIMES 

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, February 8, 1991                   TAG: 9102080056
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: DAYTONA BEACH, FLA.                                 LENGTH: Medium

COPE DRAWS BUSCH CLASH POLE POSITION

Daytona 500 defending champion Derrike Cope, who snuck into Sunday's Busch Clash by winning a wild-card draw in December, extended his good fortune here Thursday when he inherited the pole position for the 20-lap race.

The 13 other Clash drivers, all 1990 pole winners, failed to select the top starting spot in a blind drawing. Cope was the last to draw.

"I hope to be in a position to win and then see what happens again," Cope said. "We've had good luck here, but I think the first time you feel comfortable, or that this place likes you, it comes up and grabs you by the throat."

Kyle Petty will start on the outside of the front row. Alan Kulwicki has the third starting spot, and Geoff Bodine is in the fourth. The rest of the field, in order, features Brett Bodine, Dale Earnhardt, Dick Trickle, Greg Sacks, Ernie Irvan, Rusty Wallace, Ken Schrader, Mark Martin, Bill Elliott and Ricky Rudd.

This year's Clash features a new segmented format that stops the racing after 10 laps and inverts the field. So if Cope can hold the lead for the first half of the race, he starts the last half from the rear.

A caution period will split the 10-lap segments and cars may pit for up to two laps. The yellow flag laps will not count. Payoff for the first segment will be 40 percent of the $280,000 purse, with $25,000 to the winner. The second segment payoff will be 60 percent of the purse, with $35,000 to the winner.

"I like the new format," Kulwicki said. "They needed to do something to this race to make it more exciting. If anything can do it, this is probably it."

Keywords:
AUTO RACING 


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