NASCAR reinstates Randy LaJoie after he completes counseling program
NASCAR has reinstated ESPN analyst and two-time Busch Series champion Randy LaJoie after he successfully completed a counseling program following his June 22 suspension for violating the sanctioning body’s substance abuse policy, NASCAR announced today.
LaJoie released a statement in June saying that he had tested positive for marijuana when he voluntarily took a test June 3 in order to be a spotter for Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 18 Nationwide Series car.
"I am thankful to NASCAR for reinstating me for competition and grateful to my friends and family who supported me through this time," LaJoie said in a statement. "This has been a tremendous learning and growing process for me, and I have come through it a stronger, better person. I am looking forward to returning to work, and continuing to prove to NASCAR, my colleagues, my family and my friends that this was an isolated incident that I have put behind me."
The 1996 and 1997 Busch Series champion had appeared on a variety of ESPN’s NASCAR programming until he was indefinitely suspended from that job in June after the failed drug test. There was no immediate word on whether he would be back on the air now that NASCAR has reinstated him.
