A method for combining storage array copy requests for a disk storage system is disclosed. The method may include receiving a BGC (background copy) request, determining that the BGC request satisfies a set of background copy (BGC) criteria, and adding, based on the determining, the BGC request to a sorted position in the wait accumulation queue (WAQ). The method may also include combining, based on a set of track combining criteria, the BGC request and an adjacent BGC request into a combined BGC request including data locations corresponding to the BGC request and to the adjacent BGC request. The method may also include replacing, in a sorted position in the WAQ, the BGC request and the adjacent BGC request with the combined BGC request, and moving, based on the set of BGC criteria, the combined BGC request to a BGC queue.