When looking at other major sports, it seems that NASCAR has been spared the worst of the serious drug use controversies. The most famous driver to be suspended due to a failed drug test was 13-time race winner Tim Richmond in 1988. Richmond joined Hendrick Motorsports and began building an impressive record on the circuit, and he was regularly listed on the . Richmond, however, denied the drug use, and it was later stated that medications to suppress cold symptoms triggered the positive result. Regardless, NASCAR officials no longer wanted Richmond in the sport. Richmond had lost weight because of, and unknown to NASCAR, he was dying from AIDS. From NASCAR's perspective, the weight loss and subsequent symptoms must be the result of drugs; rumors in the Cup garage supported this assumption.



In 1989, Richmond passed away due to complications from AIDS.

Since Tim Richmond's unceremonious removal from the sport two decades ago, very few drivers have faced the wrath of NASCAR because of drugs. Drivers Shane Hmiel, Tyler Walker, Kevin Grubb, and Aaron Fike have been suspended by NASCAR in recent years. Grubb and Hmiel received lifetime bans after failing drug tests following reinstatements from a previous suspension due to drugs.

Hmiel is the son of veteran mechanic, Steve Hmiel, who has built an impressive career working for names like Dale Earnhardt Inc, Rousch Racing, and Chip Ganassi Racing. Hmiel was one of the most talented new drivers earlier in the decade, but persistent drug use tarnished a promising career.

Kevin Grubb was an up and coming driver in the latter half of the 1990s. Before he was suspend for failing a test in 2003, Grubb was making a small mark in the Busch Series, which is now the Nationwide Series. Despite the fact that Grubb was reinstated after being gone for three years from the track, he lasted just a year before final suspension in 2007. Grubb committed suicide in May 2009, drying of gunshot wound to the head.

The driver Tyler Walker, suspended in 2006 for failing his drug test, is also friends with Spring Cup Series driver, Kasey Kahne. Tyler has yet to file for NASCAR reinstatement.

Driver Aaron Fike's claim to infamy came when he was arrested for heroin possession at a theme park and subsequently suspended by NASCAR officials. Later, in an interview with ESPN's 'The Magazine,' Fike said that he was using heroin on race day. NASCAR took the Fike interview as a serious wake-up call.

Until this latest racing season, NASCAR officials had reserved drug testing for those drivers under suspicion for illicit drug abuse. NASCAR's new drug policy includes random testing for all drivers and crewmembers through the driving season using third-party service Aegis Science Corp Labs, which is managed by Dr. David Black.

A small number of crewmembers have been suspended following positive testing.

On May 9, 2009 at Darlington Raceway, Jeremy Mayfield became the biggest name since Tim Richmond to face an indefinite suspension after testing positive. Mayfield's claim is that the positive result is due to a combination of Claritin-D, an allergy medication, and a legally prescribed medication. Both Dr. Black and NASCAR have made it clear that they reject Mayfield's claim.

Mayfield refuses to withdraw his claim and has hired a lawyer named Bill Diehl to represent him. There appears to be a legal suit in NASCAR's very near future.

Although NASCAR has not revealed the supposed illicit material, and Mayfield was totally ignorant of the drug until recently. Both Mayfield and Diehl obtain updated reports at the beginning of the week.

Essentially, it comes down as Mayfield's word against theirs, and the case will probably be resolved outside of court. It has triggered plenty of attention on the sport of NASCAR, and not in a good way. Still, there isn't any cause for concern for the . The coverage of Mayfield's legal protests have sidetracked many notable events coming out of NASCAR that could mean some good press for a change. Much of this is about the fact that drug issues are still a rarer thing in NASCAR than they are in the NBA, NFL, MLB, or the NHL.

The random drug screening process is an improvement from the testing only on reasonable suspicion approach. The only trouble is that NASCAR officials have failed to provide a list of banned substance. The management of NASCAR would like to be in control of this list. With information like the banned substance list in their hands, both crewmembers and drivers would know what is acceptable and what is not.

As with other professional sports, drug use is prohibited by NASCAR.