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Kevin Harvick, who implemented a drug-testing program for his own teams earlier this year, says NASCAR's new substance-abuse policy, introduced Saturday at Dover International Speedway, is a "great step for our sport."
The policy calls for preseason, mandatory testing for all drivers, over-the-wall crew members and NASCAR officials, and random tests throughout the season in the Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Craftsman Truck series.
Teams from every series also must verify that all licensed crew members have been tested by a certified lab prior to the season.
NASCAR's tests will be performed by AEGIS, the largest independent sports and forensic certified testing lab in the United States.
Under the previous policy, testing was done on the basis of "reasonable suspicion," and tests were conducted by NASCAR. A number of Cup drivers and crew members who had been in the sport more than five years have said they never were tested under that policy.
"This is very public now and very open," said Harvick, who in May instituted a similar program for his Nationwide and Craftsman Truck Series teams, after Truck Series driver Aaron Fike admitted he competed in several races last season while under the influence of heroin.
"I felt like that was the weakest part of what we were doing." Harvick said. "Joe Schmo didn't know what we were doing for a drug-testing policy. Now it's very open and everybody knows that it's taken care of."
NASCAR officials held a mandatory meeting at 10:30 a.m. ET in Dover's Nationwide garage to inform drivers and team owners of the policy. A similar meeting was held for the Truck Series personnel in Las Vegas.
The policy is more in line with those of other major sports, though there is no specific list of banned substances.
"We think we have the broadest policy in all of sports," said Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR's vice president of racing operations and the point person on the new policy. "As you've seen in other leagues, the list is constantly changing. "We feel we can test for any substance that can be abused."
The focus of the tests will be on narcotics, beta blockers and steroids. AEGIS will be at the track almost every race weekend to administer the random tests, which will be determined by numbers on a computer.
O'Donnell said anywhere from 12 to 14 crew members per series will be tested each weekend, and that an average of two drivers per series will be tested. Some could be tested more often, with "reasonable suspicion" still a part of the policy.
O'Donnell said three failed tests would result in an automatic lifetime ban from the sport. He said the governing body also reserves judgment to impose a lifetime ban after one failed test, with automatic suspension the first step.
He added that refusal to take a test, or simply failure to show up for one, would count as a failed test.
There are provisions in the policy, as there always have been, for drivers to notify NASCAR when they are under a prescribed medicine that may show up on a test.
O'Donnell said the timing of the new policy was not the direct result of Fike's case, or the recent admission of Truck series driver Ron Hornaday that he used a testosterone cream obtained from a Florida clinic that pleaded guilty to criminal charges resulting from its online sale of prescription drugs.
"We just think it's the right program at the right time to put into place," O'Donnell said. "Everything evolves. To maintain the integrity and safety of the competitors and fans, we needed to do this."
The policy calls for preseason, mandatory testing for all drivers, over-the-wall crew members and NASCAR officials, and random tests throughout the season in the Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Craftsman Truck series.
Teams from every series also must verify that all licensed crew members have been tested by a certified lab prior to the season.
NASCAR's tests will be performed by AEGIS, the largest independent sports and forensic certified testing lab in the United States.
Under the previous policy, testing was done on the basis of "reasonable suspicion," and tests were conducted by NASCAR. A number of Cup drivers and crew members who had been in the sport more than five years have said they never were tested under that policy.
"This is very public now and very open," said Harvick, who in May instituted a similar program for his Nationwide and Craftsman Truck Series teams, after Truck Series driver Aaron Fike admitted he competed in several races last season while under the influence of heroin.
"I felt like that was the weakest part of what we were doing." Harvick said. "Joe Schmo didn't know what we were doing for a drug-testing policy. Now it's very open and everybody knows that it's taken care of."
NASCAR officials held a mandatory meeting at 10:30 a.m. ET in Dover's Nationwide garage to inform drivers and team owners of the policy. A similar meeting was held for the Truck Series personnel in Las Vegas.
The policy is more in line with those of other major sports, though there is no specific list of banned substances.
"We think we have the broadest policy in all of sports," said Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR's vice president of racing operations and the point person on the new policy. "As you've seen in other leagues, the list is constantly changing. "We feel we can test for any substance that can be abused."
The focus of the tests will be on narcotics, beta blockers and steroids. AEGIS will be at the track almost every race weekend to administer the random tests, which will be determined by numbers on a computer.
O'Donnell said anywhere from 12 to 14 crew members per series will be tested each weekend, and that an average of two drivers per series will be tested. Some could be tested more often, with "reasonable suspicion" still a part of the policy.
O'Donnell said three failed tests would result in an automatic lifetime ban from the sport. He said the governing body also reserves judgment to impose a lifetime ban after one failed test, with automatic suspension the first step.
He added that refusal to take a test, or simply failure to show up for one, would count as a failed test.
There are provisions in the policy, as there always have been, for drivers to notify NASCAR when they are under a prescribed medicine that may show up on a test.
O'Donnell said the timing of the new policy was not the direct result of Fike's case, or the recent admission of Truck series driver Ron Hornaday that he used a testosterone cream obtained from a Florida clinic that pleaded guilty to criminal charges resulting from its online sale of prescription drugs.
"We just think it's the right program at the right time to put into place," O'Donnell said. "Everything evolves. To maintain the integrity and safety of the competitors and fans, we needed to do this."
