 | |
| Owner | D. J. Copp |
|---|---|
| Series | NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series |
| Race drivers | 63.Bobby Gerhart |
| Manufacturer | Chevrolet |
| Opened | 2017 |
| Closed | 2019 |
| Career | |
| Debut | 2017NextEra Energy Resources 250 (Daytona) |
| Latest race | 2019Strat 200 (Las Vegas) |
| Races competed | 49 |
| Drivers' Championships | 0 |
| Race victories | 0 |
| Pole positions | 0 |
Copp Motorsports was an American professionalstock car racing team that competed in theNASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series. The team was owned byD. J. Copp. The team fielded the No. 63Chevrolet Silverado part-time forBobby Gerhart,Timmy Hill andScott Stenzel. Copp purchased the assets ofContreras Motorsports in early 2017 to make the team.[1]
During the early part of 2017, D. J. Copp bought the assets of the race team an acquaintance of his,Carlos Contreras, owned.[2] Copp renumbered the trucks from the Contreras No. 71 to the traditional Copp family number, No. 83.[3] In the beginning of the 2017 season, Copp and his wife were the only two full-time employees of the team.[4]
On August 6, 2019, Copp announced that the future of the team is uncertain, commenting that "some people make it hard to love the sanctioning body".[5]
To complete the 32-truck field, Copp Motorsports field a second truck No. 36 in partnership withMB Motorsports forCamden Murphy atKansas.[6] The truck returned atDover withJ. J. Yeley behind the wheel.
In 2019, the team decided to run the No. 63 for the whole season in memory of Mike Mittler, who died on May 10, 2019.[7]
In 2017 D. J. Copp, a former dirt racer-turned-tire changer[8] and crew chief,[9] boughtContreras Motorsports and renumbered the No. 71 to the No. 83.[2] Copp's family racing history was the driving force behind changing the number to 83.[3] They made their first start withTodd Peck driving atDaytona International Speedway in theNextEra Energy Resources 250.[10] In their first start, they finished 18th.[11] Peck stayed with the team for the next race, but retired early with overheating issues.[12]Donnie Levister then made his firstCamping World Truck Series race with the team at Martinsville, but again the truck fell victim to mechanical issues.[13] Due to lack of sponsorship, the team started and parked in most of the races.
On March 15, 2017, it was announced that former drag racerSalvatore Iovino would pilot the Copp Motorsports entry full time in 2018, though the truck number may not be 83, however, the deal fell through andScott Stenzel,Bayley Currey, and Kyle Donahue now drive the 83.[14] Mike Senica made one start for Copp Motorsports in June 2017 at Iowa Speedway in the M&M's 200 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He started 33rd and finished 21st.
Early in the2017 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season, Copp formed a partnership withMB Motorsports, fielding the No. 36 forCamden Murphy with MB owner Mike Mittler as crew chief. The following week, Murphy was shuffled out of MB's No. 63 at Charlotte to make room forTodd Peck, who ran what appeared to be the Daytona truck renumbered to 63 and still under the MB banner in owner points.