Baldwin out? UPDATE 3 yes, and Stoddard in: hearing #22 crew chief Tommy Baldwin and Bill Davis Racing have parted ways, no word on a replacement or where Baldwin will go.(9-30-2002) UPDATE: Tommy Baldwin and Bill Davis Racing have parted ways, effective immediately, and Frank Stoddard will now take over crew chief duties for the #22 Dodge of Ward Burton. Reports said that Baldwin and team owner Bill Davis got into heated argument on Sunday morning prior to the Protection One 400 at Kansas Speedway. Sources said that Baldwin reportedly told some team members that Sunday would be the last day he ever calls a race for Bill Davis Racing. On Monday morning, Baldwin didn’t show up for work at the team’s shop. Later in the day, Davis called a team meeting to report that Baldwin was no longer working at BDR and that Frank Stoddard would be taking over. Baldwin was seen cleaning out his office Monday afternoon, as well. Stoddard was recently released from Roush Racing where he had been Jeff Burton’s crew chief since 1998.(NASCAR.com) UPDATE 2: hearing on a radio show, the Morning Buzz, that Stoddard said he is not an employee of BDR at this time, and he still has some issues still have to be woked out with Roush Racing. UPDATE 3: Last week, discussions began between Frank Stoddard and Bill Davis about possibilities of joining forces in the months ahead. Stoddard became interested in the potential that Bill Davis Racing had to offer. “In the past few weeks, Bill and I have spoken about a position within his organization for the 2003 season,” said Stoddard. “He has a first class facility and I believe that his teams have the potential to win a lot of races. They have won twice this year in the 22 and are building the 23 for the 2003 season. Obviously, I was caught off guard by the opportunity to work with Ward, but at the same time I am excited about the opportunity to pick up and begin working with a winning team. These are a great group of guys and they are already a great team. We’ll see how things work the rest of this season. We have seven races left in this year to see if Ward and I can form a relationship that can be successful. At the end of the season, Bill, Ward and I will sit down and talk about how we feel about where the program is at and how we’re going to progress with the future.”(Bill Davis Racing PR)(10-1-2002)
