5:15PM update is that Tara Ragan has confirmed while on the Sirius Speedway show on SiriusXM radio the substance Allmendinger tested positive for is amphetamines.
Click here for the link to ESPN reporter David Newton's story on the amphetamine confirmation.
Click here for the Charlotte Observer's Jim Utter on the same topic.
At 4PM here is the scoop:
Allmendinger has decided to enter NASCAR's "Road to Recovery" rehab program. This allows a NASCAR license-holder to complete a prescribed series of treatments and tests in order to be reinstated. Once you agree to this program, you waive any right to appeal the actual violation.
Tara Ragan, Allmendinger's business manager and spokesperson, said today on various media outlets that Aegis Lab did not specifically tell Allmendinger what caused the violation and that she was waiting for a more detailed lab report to be delivered.
Dr. Black from Aegis then told ESPN's David Newton that the cause of the violation could not be an over the counter dietary supplement and that type of issue would have been cleared up before the original violation was reported to NASCAR.
David Higdon from NASCAR then told Newton that Allmendinger had been told of the substance in question that caused the violation from the date of the original test.
Ragan, Higdon and Tim Cindric from Team Penske will all be guests on the 6PM ET edition of the NASCAR RaceHub program today on SPEED. Bob Dillner will be reporting on the topic.
Updated information on this topic will be included on this post. We welcome your comments on this topic.
23 comments:
Gofast makes you go slower. When will they ever learn?
I will just say before the show starts,both Speed and Race Hub have a unique chance to shine here,let's see how they handle it.
Coffeeshop42
They emailed me a couple of times before the show as the line-up continued to change.
Even now, more stuff is coming out.
Here we go.....
JD
Well when Nascar tests drivers and non-drivers alike, I find it difficult to believe that their testing results are "fair".
Glad to see that AJ is going to go with a prescribed program in order to get his life back again. Good Luck AJ!
I hope that Penske is going to stand behind him. Perhaps its time for an email asking them to stand behind A.J. he's going to need the support now more than ever.
As I said on the post, Jim Utter from the Charlotte Observer reported that Tara Ragan told him amphetamines.
How hard is that to ask her about?
is Racehub 'recorded' live, or actually live? Just trying to figure the timeline. I always thought it was the former.
Anon, the moved RaceDay to a live format a while back.
While some of the interviews that need to be edited are done in advance, the studio stuff is live.
JD
Tonight's airing of Racehub was strange. 10 minutes into the show the "LIVE" logo mysteriously disappeared. Makes me think all the interviews were recorded. Racehub had a chance to shine tonight and they failed miserably. Unfortunately, that's par for the course with SPEED. As for AJ - man up and admit you have a problem and get help. Do an interview and tell your fans what you tested positive for. Hiding behind your business manager, who is obviously lying to protect you, is only hurting your career further.
in all fairness, it could have been much worse. I like her on features, but Danielle isn't exactly Barbara Walters, and that lack of experience really shows with something this serious. She was not particularly good, thinking on her feet--but I also had the feeling that Racehub, as a feature show, wasn't about to ask the hard questions anyways. It's not what they do, and I always have the feeling somehow that the producers intentionally do not send them in that direction. Obviously they ought to have done better (too bad it wasn't Steve's night). But she kept summarizing the situation incorrectly and not picking up on all the details.
VickyD, what's wrong with testing drivers and non-drivers? You can't have a different policy for every position.
Kathy, non-drivers aren't racing on the track and yet they are suspended as if they are on the track all weekend. The testing should start at the top of Nascar and go down. Let's see what turns up!
Amphetamines.
One thing that should be reported is that when scientific evaluation of amphetamines is done on a GC/MS test, the lab can determine exactly which kind are present. As you know, there are many different kinds, and the labs can identify the illegal kind from the kind prescribed (for example, Adderall) or the kind that might show up in an otherwise legal drug (for example, Sudafed). When it comes to amphetamines, there is no "false positive" because these drugs have a very specific chemical composition, which is both easy to detect and easy to identify vis-a-vis other similar drugs.
On a side note - how bad is the photoshop of AJ in that product ad you posted? It looks like the pasted AJ's head onto Tony Stewart's body (or at least someone 80 pounds heavier).
I have purposely avoided commenting on this situation until now. As far as I'm concerned, Race Hub really dropped the ball tonight. Their coverage of the Almendinger situation was pathetic. Nascar spokesman David Higdon didn't didn't impress me in the least, but he reiterated very clearly the Nascar policy regarding failed drug tests. Nascar's MRO (Medical Review Officer) informs the individual (AJ) and Nascar what the SPECIFIC substance was that resulted in a failed test. Yet during the program, Matt, Danielle and Larry Mac would have you believe that AJ didn't know what the banned substance was. This sloppy reporting is typical of what you get from Nascar television and the writers that cover the sport. Enough said....
Vicki..so a spotter (with a bunch of lives in his hands) or a guy putting brakes on a car shouldn't have the same standards? I had a friend who worked for a bus company, and it scared the crap out of him what went on with the guys in the shop, cause he knew he was gonna be driving that bus. I don't disagree with the 'top down' idea though...
anon 8:25--we don't get much sloppy reporting from NASCAR veterans...usually it's part timers or newbies. What I would hope is that someone walks Danielle & the rest through the tape as a learning experience, and shows them where they were wrong; but on SPEED, I can't see that happening. But you also forget--they all still need hard cards. And *that's* why, imho, they tread so lightly on these things. And no, Higdon was not impressive.
"In my head, no, we didn't know what the drug was. Amphetamines was too general for us when trying to figure out what it is."
As far as I'm concerned nothing has changed. They still haven't identified exactly what drug in what amount violated the test, only a general category. I'm willing to wait for full disclosure before writing off AJ to Mayfieldland.
Here is something small, yet large, which annoys me because it seems unfair. If I understand the rule correctly AJ had 48 hours after the B sample results to agree to treatment. Now, supposing he wanted his own lab to do a test of the samples prior to deciding? Not a chance in hell he could get it done in 48 hours -- especially if NASCAR itself with a lab under contract could not pull it off. It took them days and days both times. Add to that dropping the other shoe at 9pm -- and thereby I suppose starting the 48 hour clock -- AJ "lost" around 12 hours out of the 48 before the cliche "Start of Business" hour of 9am the following day.
If I am right on the rule here this is completely unfair to an accused, but that is NASCAR and this kind of imperious conduct is pushing me away.
I do not want to go, but in spite of not wanting to little by little I am leaving.
AR, you have a good point about the timeline. Why restrict someone to 48 hours; I don't quite understand that part of the policy (especially if it happened to include a weekend day...even if you only wanted to consult with your own physician, he/she might not be reachable in that time frame.)
We all have our dark little secret's,the key is how many of them we have,and how bad they are.I wish i could tell everybody here that my biggest secret is that i enjoy watching "The Golden Girls",but onfortunately,i have worse.Which isn't saying i believe AJ is guilty,but he hasn't helped his case by not revealing the substance and possibly having his business manager lie.I have not seen any signs yet(it's still early though)that he is going to fight this,which is discouraging but then again according to Tara he wants to get back in the car which i can't blame him for.But so far,i am a bit disappointed in the actions he's taken.
Coffeeshop42
Here's the thing I don't quite get. NASCAR knows what the 'substance' is (Higdon tried to correct Trotta by saying they weren't calling it a stimulant, but a 'substance' and she made the mistake *again* in her summary). Anyways...I found Tara to be evasive, even though she claimed not to be, yet--I have to believe NASCAR powers that be would take a very dim view of them lying about what it is, if she did that. They've (NASCAR) pledged not to say what it is, but if AJ's camp did indeed mislead the public, if he wants back in to the sport at any time, it's not good to make the NASCAR gods angry....just saying...Tara must have a hard card too.
RPM, I too want someone to ID the exact substance (the precise chemical name) AJ is accused of having in his bloodstream/urine before I can draw any conclusions, but I don't think that will happen.
Newton's story says "She [Ragan] said the term was so broad that she opted to refer to it as a stimulant." The term was broad so she chose to use an even broader term? It does seem like she was being a bit evasive on that, though I think she's handled things well in general.
I agree with the comment that "NASCAR's Road to Recovery" is a bit too cute. I'm surprised it's not sponsored like everything else in NASCAR.
Having seen a few comments towards the end that irk me, let me throw in my own two cents:
I can go down to the local Dollar Tree, right now, buy a bunch of sleeping pills that are basically Benadryl, and eat them en masse trying to get to sleep.
It will make me test positive. That's just over the counter, worst stuff ever type of example.
AJ's camp sounds like a team that wants to know exactly what they found. To the molecule. I'd be exactly the same way if I ate those sleeping pills and was tagged as being a meth-head.
My snarky reply: "So I'm doing amphetamines? Must be some high octane coffee I am drinking."
Far as Ragan is concerned, she's in a rough patch right now - because no matter what, AJ is guilty, and evil, and whatever, and she has to put a PR face on it.
AJ, and their race team, IMO, really should've been a lot more transparent about the proceedings, what was found, etc. That they haven't makes me wonder. I have a false positive, I am going to be screaming about it.
Something isn't right here, but I don't think ol' AJ is sitting in the hauler with a glass pipe firing up crystal meth.
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