NASCAR.com reports that Jeremy Mayfield, the race driver who according to NASCAR tested positive for meth last May 9 and was suspended because of it, has once again tested positive for the drug. According to the sanctioning body of the racing sport, the (second) positive result was derived during the July 6 random drug test.

Mayfield, who has been defending his innocence for the past month or so, was outraged by the news. He accused the NASCAR sanctioning body of paying his stepmother to lie about him and his supposed drug use.

The drug test results were submitted by NASCAR to the U.S. District Court last Wednesday, after the federal judge has ruled in favor of Mayfield and has lifted his race ban. NASCAR officials are asking the court to once again reinstate the ban because Mayfield is allegedly a danger to fans and other racers when on track.

Included in the files submitted by the sanctioning body was an affidavit from Mayfield’s stepmother, Lisa. Lisa claims that she had seen Mayfield taking meth “at least 30 times over seven years”.

An angry Mayfield spoke up against NASCAR officials in a phone interview with The Associated Press. According to the driver:

“I don’t trust anything NASCAR does, anything Dr. David Black does, never have, never will.”

“And they picked the wrong woman to use against me because that [expletive] is trash and has got nothing on me but lies,” Mayfield retorted.

The documents submitted by NASCAR show that according to Lisa Mayfield, the first time she saw Mayfield use meth was in 1998. It was at a race shop located at Mooresville, N.C.. According to Lisa Mayfield, she had seen the driver cook his own drugs, suing the once OTC pseudoephedrine. When the drug was finally taken off the shelves, according to Lisa, it became too hard for Mayfield to get ingredients, and that’s when the racer began to buy the drug from different dealers.”

Lisa’s statement reads:

“Between 1998 and 2005, I am personally aware that Jeremy used methamphetamines often…I was concerned about his heavy use and talked to his father about it. I saw Jeremy use methamphetamine by snorting it up his nose at least 30 times during the seven years I was around him. Jeremy used methamphetamine not only in my presence, but also when we were both in the presence of others.”

An outraged Mayfield shot back against his stepmother’s allegations, claiming:

“She tried everything she can do to get money out of me. I won’t help her, so I guess she found a way to get money from NASCAR by giving them an affidavit full of lies.”

The drawn-out drama between NASCAR and Mayfield began in May 9, after the driver was suspended when he failed a random drug test done by NASCAR officials. The suspension was carried out eight days after the test, and the sport’s sanctioning body claims that the driver had tested positive for use of methamphetamine.

Mayfield disagreed with the test results and didn’t just voice out his innocence, he took it to the courts! U.S. District Court Judge Graham Mullen then issued an injunction at the start of this month that allowed Mayfield to start racing in NASCAR again. The judge’s decision was based on Mayfield’s strong argument that the random drug testing conducted by NASCAR was flawed, and that it was highly-possible that what had happened was a false positive. But while Mullen may have ruled in favor of Mayfield in the case, he did allow NASCAR to test Mayfield any time.

Five days later, NASCAR showed up in Mayfield’s home and conducted a random test. Based on NASCAR statements, the “A” sample collected from Mayfield showed meth levels that were consistent with habitual users who take high doses of the drug.

John Buric, Mayfield’s lawyer, was quick to defend his client, saying:

“My only comment is that’s their result…But what I want you to keep in mind is that test was performed by the defendants in the case. Aegis Laboratories and Dr. Black are defendants in this case. I don’t know if NASCAR has the right to ask the defendant to test Jeremy’s urine sample. It ought to be done independently, but NASCAR didn’t do that.”

To counter the results derived by NASCAR, Mayfield had another drug test done, this time with his attorneys. The second lab location was chosen by Mayfield’s attorneys, and that’s where Mayfield submitted sample “B”. But NASCAR rejected the lab.

Meanwhile, Lisa Mayfield also stated that her stepson used eth in 1999, right before a Darlington race. According to her affidavit:

“We left Myrtle Beach and traveled to Darlington for the race…I saw Jeremy using methamphetamine again when we reached Darlington.”

Jeremy Mayfield defended himself against his stepmother’s allegations, saying:

“She don’t deserve the Mayfield name…She’s hated me since my dad got killed because I won’t give her any money. She goes on the Internet and blogs lies about me and Shana [his wife] and everything you can imagine. She’s broke, and I guess she got NASCAR to give her some money.”

According to Mayfield, he has also tested at least 6 times since the May 1 test—and that all the results were negative.

Source: NASCAR.com

After seven years of sponsoring BMW Sauber, the Swiss Bank Credit Suisse Group has announced that it is not renewing its contract with the Formula One team.

Credit Suisse is the second largest bank in Switzerland, and has been one of the main sponsors for the Swiss Sauber team since 2001. When the giant German automaker BMW took over the team, the Credit Suisse Group made the decision to remain with the F1 team.

The bank’s contract with BMW Sauber ended last year, and the Credit Suisse big bosses chose not to renew its deal with the F1 team. The bank explained its sudden decision to cease BMW Sauber sponsorship, saying that it was now concentrating on sponsoring other local institutions and regional events instead of going all out on international ones. Credit Suisse officials pointed out its past support of the National Gallery in London and the New York Philharmonic as solid examples.

In spite of losing one of its main sponsors, the team remains in good shape. In fact, BMW Sauber has just unveiled the new BMW F1.09! Its contender for the 2009 Formula One Season.

Last year, BMW Sauber experienced its first victory during the Canadian Grand Prix, when Robert Kubica zoomed right past the finish line and his teammate Nick Heidfeld. The team’s performance last season was far from shabby, placing third behind Ferrari and McLaren-Mercedes.

Sources: The Associated Press, Guardian.co.uk

Remember the deal that the Indy Racing League made with Brazilian ethanol producers for the 2009 IRL season? Well, apparently this decision managed to piss off a bunch of Midwestern farmers—and it’s understandable why.

U.S. Ethanol Producers Say:

In a letter addressed to the IRL executives, the president of the Renewable Fuels Association, Bob Dinneen, wrote: “The decision to bypass the more than 180 ethanol biorefineries across our country in favor of a tanker ship from Sao Paulo to be the official supplier of fuel for the [Indy Racing League] is an affront to America’s farmers… and all Americans who have fought and are fighting for our energy independence.”

This letter led to the IRL officials frantically arranging meetings with the Iowa Corn Marketing Council, Iowa Corn Growers Association, and the National Corn rowers Association last November 24 and 25. Also present in these meetings were the Iowa Speedway officials.

According to the Iowa Corn Growers Association CEO, Craig Floss, the IRL’s decision to tie-up with Brazilian sponsors was both “disappointing and frustrating to our members…”

It is after all, no big secret that for years, Brazilian ethanol producers have been attempting to get the US government to lift the 54-cent per gallon tariff placed on foreign-made biofuel. This tariff was something which the Brazilians even agreed to cover exclusively for the Indy Racing League. In the minds of the U.S. ethanol producers, Brazil is trying to establish a strong relationship with the IRL, in hopes that the government will eventually remove this tariff.

Terry Angstadt

According to the Indy Racing League Officials…

The IRL officials have since stated that they’re not going to be taking sides.

Terry Angstadt, the president of the Indy Racing League’s commercial division even went so far as to say: “We find it interesting we’re put on the defensive for using a renewable fuel, ethanol, while every other race series is using petroleum-based fuel. And we know where that comes from. “

Angstadt also stated that after the meeting last week, both sides—the IRL and the American ethanol producers—came to an understanding regarding the position of both parties.

Sugarcane versus Corn

A Sort-Of Compromise

To clarify, even after the whole meeting and the “airing of sides”, the IRL is still going to push through with the deal with Brazil. But the IRL did announce a sorta-kinda compromise attained by the corn ethanol industry representatives and the IRL.

IRL officials are still planning on traveling to Brazil to finalize their contract with Brazilian ethanol producers. This meeting will happen on the 8^th of December with APEX-Brasil.

But, here’s the catch: as a weird gesture that’s designed to smoothen the ruffled feathers of corn ethanol producers from the U.S., APEX-Brasil is going to be purchasing U.S.-made ethanol to give to the IRL during the 2009 IRL season. But after that, there’s probably going to be a shift back to Brazilian-made ethanol.

Since the IRL struck a multi-year deal with APEX-Brasil, this strange gesture seems like a way of reaching out to the corn ethanol producers in America to prevent further episodes like this issue from taking place after the 2009 IRL season.

Larry DeGaris, the University of Indianapolis’ director of academic sports marketing programs said that: “This is definitely a branding initiative by Brazilian ethanol makers to strike at the heart of the American-made ethanol…Remember, the IRL’s strength in the U.S. is Midwestern corn country.”

Auto Drifting

What is Auto Drifting?

These days, auto drifting is considered as one of the most popular types of motorsports around the world. But prior to becoming a sport on its own, a few decades ago, drifting was simply considered a type of driving or cornering technique that allowed a driver to slide through a corner in an almost-perfect right angle from the road’s curve.

This technique was done by putting the car’s front wheels in a semi-lock position at a point that was opposite of the direction of where the vehicle was supposed to be turning. Done in high speeds, this graceful maneuver can be quite dangerous since the car readily loses a lot of traction, making it harder to control. But with years of training, drifters are able to not only control the skidding motion of their rides, but to also prolong the vehicle’s sliding until the end of the bend.

Unlike other auto racing sports that focus on keeping full control over vehicle traction, drifting is all about losing as much control as possible without crashing your car. It’s a pretty exciting sport, but is something that should be done only after proper training.

Who Started Auto Drifting?

Nobody really “started” auto drifting since racers and even ordinary drivers have been putting this technique into practice for decades (although most of the time this move is done by accident). If you’ve ever experienced stepping on your brakes during the rainy season and momentarily losing control over your car as it slides for a few feet or so, then you’ve experienced involuntary drifting.

In the end, it’s all about losing traction but still having enough control over your vehicle to prevent it from toppling over.

Introducing: Keiichi Tsuchiya

While the technique itself may no longer be “news” in the racing circles, one man is credited for bringing the spotlight to this excellent driving maneuver—Keiichi Tsuchiya. Keiichi Tsuchiya is often referred to by drifters—or drivers who practice drifting—as the “Drift King”, and for good reason. Since his early start in the motoring world in the 1970s, Tsuchiya has been demonstrating his amazing drifting abilities at incredibly high speeds, earning him quite the following and several championships to boot.

His “moves” created such an impact in the motoring world that street racers started following suit, eventually turning this technique into a full-blown motorsport all on its own.

Drifting as a Motorsport

Although the trend started in Japan, the West eventually caught on. These days, drifting is just as popular in Japan as it is in Europe, the UK, the Middle East, and even the United States.