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Mayfield’s Suspension And Drug Use €“ The What, Who, And Why
If you follow Nascar news, you are most likely aware NASCAR driver Jeremy Mayfield was suspended for failing two drug tests. The suspension was made known at the Darlington Raceway last Saturday and hogged NASCAR news for some time. Mayfield was suspended along with two other members of other teams. Today, many question what drug Mayfield was supposedly using.
Prior to the Darlington announcement, Mayfield had failed to pass one other drug test. Despite these results, Mayfield was still allowed to practice and qualify for the Darlington race. Apparently, Mayfield requested a “B†test, which he subsequently failed. Suspension was not Mayfield’s
sole penalty; his ownership of Mayfield motorsports was also invalidated.
At the current time, Mayfield claims all he took was OTC allergy medications combined with one prescription medication, which, in turn, caused him to flunk his drug tests. Mayfield’s protestations of innocence are yet to be proven. While Mayfield cannot race, J.J Yeley will be racing on his behalf. At the same time, Mayfield’s wife will officially be considered team owner.
Not surprisingly, the Mayfield case made a lot of people curious. Foremost among the questions was the type of drugs that caused Mayfield’s suspension. “The first thing is, there should not be a mystery out. This should be public knowledge,” says 2002 NASCAR rookie Ryan Newman.
Newman did not discuss whether or not he thought Mayfield guilty; but he did reveal concerns about the situation. “I don’t know the whole story for what’s happened. Knowing what the penalty is, knowing what caused the situation is extremely important,†he clarifies.
2004 champion Kurt Busch voiced the same concerns as Newman’s. When I go into a drug testing scenario, we don’t know what the outcome can be because we don’t know what they’re testing for. It’s very open-ended…I like it (the drug testing policy), and I don’t like it at the same time,†Busch points out.
Other racers like Brian Vickers worry that the vagueness of information will become a prickly issue later on. In particular, “I am afraid to take my multi-vitamin…Because you call them (NASCAR) and ask them ‘is this multi-vitamin ok?’ And their response is ‘well, I think it is, but if it tests positive, there’s nothing we can do about it’,†he avers.
It’s worth noting that NASCAR drivers are pros at driving and racing. Forcing them to hesitate when it comes to taking something as simple as a multi-vitamin is both unfair and unnecessary. NASCAR should divulge a list of prohibited substances and precisely what drugs caused Mayfield’s suspension. In so doing, all the issues resulting from this NASCAR news will be answered.
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