Sports briefs for January 21, 2004

Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2004 | 9:18 a.m.

Countrymen step up for strapped F-1 driver

Fans raised $700,000 in two days for Zsolt Baumgartner, Hungary's first Formula One driver, after one of his sponsorship contracts fell through, jeopardizing his place on the Minardi team.

The donations "should be enough" to keep Baumgartner's drive for the bottom-ranked Minardi, his manager Thomas Frank, said. The season begins March 7 in Australia.

Fans raised money by calling a premium rate phone line and sending funds to Baumgartner's management company. Last week, Baumgartner's $2.4 million agreement with Mol Rt., Hungary's biggest oil company, collapsed. Fans are also boycotting Mol's gas stations.

Baumgartner made his F-1 debut with the Jordan team in Hungary and Italy last year. He agreed to join Minardi in December after securing $4 million from the Hungarian government. Minardi is among several smaller F-1 teams that require drivers to bring sponsorship money.

Jaguars make changes

The Jacksonville Jaguars today hired former Seattle Seahawks assistant Pete Rodriguez as their special-teams coach and moved quarterbacks coach Ken Anderson to the job of receivers coach.

Red Sox re-sign two

The Boston Red Sox avoided salary arbitration and signed contracts with outfielder Trot Nixon and right-handed reliever Byung-Hyun Kim.

Ex-Rocket convicted

Former Houston Rockets forward Eddie Griffin was convicted in a Houston court on a charge of marijuana possession. Griffin also has a trial next month on a felony charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon stemming from an alleged fight with a woman in October.

Ban overturned

A court in Sao Paulo, Brazil, overturned the two-year ban against long jumper Maurren Higa Maggi, saying the failed drug test may have been the result of doctors applying a pharmaceutical cream after she was cut during a hair-removal process.

Flyers make trade

The Philadelphia Flyers sent right winger Justin Williams to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for defenseman Danny Markov.