Press Snoop: RIP Tom Baldwin Sr.

the latest news from around the world, courtesy of press snoop Lynne Huntting.

Veteran stock car racer TOM BALDWIN was killed late Thursday night after a crash in a NASCAR Featherlite Modified race at Thompson International Speedway in Connecticut. Baldwin, 57, went evasive of a crash on lap ten into the wet, slick infield and was hit by another out of control driver, RONALD SILK. Baldwin went into the three cement blocks around a light post. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

The rain-delayed, 150-lap race was postponed, with no new date scheduled. The Connecticut police are investigating the accident.

Baldwin had been racing for the past 40 years, with six victories in the Modified Series and was last year's 'most popular driver'. He has perhaps more than 250 stock car victories.

Baldwin Sr is the father of TOMMY BALDWIN Jr, crew chief for KASEY KAHNE's #9 Dodge Dealers Dodge. Junior was at Michigan International Speedway on Friday for NASCAR Nextel Cup qualifying with the Evernham Motorsports team. EMS competition director, SAMMY JOHNS, is coming to the track to stand in for Junior should the need arise, and team owner, RAY EVERNHAM, has made his airplane available for Baldwin.

Baldwin Sr. is survived by Tommy Jr and daughter Tammy.

Evernham Motorsports will run a full time Busch Series team next year, with the driver not yet selected. Evernham will have 'tryouts' for four drivers - TRACY HINES, SCOTT LYNCH, MARK McFARLAND, and PAUL WOLFE, by giving each driver three Busch races this year. Unilever Foods sponsorship is credited by Evernham for allowing the 'farm club' approach to training new NASCAR drivers. Hines is the first driver to have a run at it, starting this weekend at MIS. He will start 41st, taking a provisional.

NASCAR Nextel Cup qualifying was rained out for the second weekend in a row, so the field will be gridded according to owner points for Sunday's GFS Marketplace 400 race. This means the Hendrick team-mates, JIMMIE JOHNSON and JEFF GORDON will start on the front row.

Thirty-eight Cup drivers will start based on points, with five using provisionals - DERRIKE COPE, MORGAN SHEPHERD, BOBBY HAMILTON Jr, HERMIE SADLER and CARL LONG.

Eight drivers lost out, having no owner points: KEVIN LEPAGE, KERRY EARNHARDT, KYLE BUSCH, KENNY WALLACE, JJ YELEY, MIKE WALLACE, STAN BOYD and STANTON BARRETT Jr.

I guess SBC isn't considered a competitor of Nextel and therefore is allowed as a sponsor in a Cup race.

The Busch Series field for Saturday's Cabela 250 race was likewise set by owner points, with MARTIN TRUEX Jr and rookie KYLE BUSCH starting on the front row. Truex was fastest in the only track session held before the rains came. Busch was rained out of a chance at qualifying for the Cup race. Kahne holds the Busch qualifying track record of 186.490mph, set last August.

Eight Busch drivers made the field other than on owner points: JEFF FULLER, JUSTIN LABONTE, JAMIE McMURRAY, ERIC McCLURE, STANTON BARRETT, TRACY HINES, RUSTY WALLACE and MARK MARTIN.

Seven Busch drivers failed to make the cut due to lack of owner points: KEVIN LEPAGE - his second rain out of the day - TONY STEWART, rookie PAUL MENARD, CW SMITH, SHELBY HOWARD, TODD SZEGEDY and BOBBY LABONTE.

ANTONIO PIZZONIA will replace RALF SCHUMACHER in the #Williams BMW F1 car for the third time next weekend at the Belgian Grand Prix Formula One race, while the German continues to recover from his accident at the United States Grand Prix in June. Schumacher has not yet been cleared to drive by the Formula One medical delegate, Dr SID WATKINS, and may not get into the car until the Monza test at the end of this month.

Pizzonia has prior experience at the track, in other formula series including F3000.

The FIM MotoGP pre-calendar was announced by DORNA Communications on Friday. The new United States event at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, which will run MotoGP only, is shown as 10 July 2005. It is one of 17 races, on a schedule which begins in mid-April and runs through the first weekend in November. The second date of 17 April 2005 is to be confirmed - it is shown as either Jacarepagua in Rio or Welkom in South Africa.

Open-wheel Indy car racing will run after all at Portland International Raceway, and not just on a year to year basis. Champ Car announced it has "reached agreement with officials of the city of Portland to a memorandum of understanding for races over the next three years." Portland city officials and business leaders held a press conference on Friday to break the news.

Champ Car president, DICK EIDSWICK, said "It has always been our position that we wanted to continue racing in Portland. The Portland market is very important to the series, our drivers enjoy the track and this past year's race showed the potential that this event has."