Jeremy Mayfield says sale of team is near, but he’s pursuing sponsorship to race again
NASCAR owner/driver Jeremy Mayfield has not competed since May 2 at Richmond International Raceway. // Jeff Robinson, NASCAR Scene
CHARLOTTE - Embattled NASCAR owner/driver Jeremy Mayfield said Friday he is close to selling his Mayfield Motorsports Sprint Cup team.
"Our team is in the process right now of being sold, and we think we've sold the assets, and we're working ... on doing that, and ... we'll move on from there," Mayfield told SceneDaily.com after an appearance on WBT radio in Charlotte.
Mayfield also said he has been in contact with Smallsponsor.com owner Robert Craddock and has sponsors interested in backing him if NASCAR allows him to return to the sport. Craddock's company sponsored Mayfield previously this season before he was suspended by NASCAR on May 9 for what officials said was a failed May 1 drug test.
"We're sitting here working hard on that and to see what our next direction is...," Mayfield said. "Smallsponsor.com has been in touch with me, and he has a couple of huge companies that might want to come in and help me get my career back to where it was."
Mayfield also said that he has been in contact with numerous Cup drivers during his suspension.
"Every one of them that I've talked to ... and I've talked to ... young to old have been so supportive and know exactly what's going on," Mayfield said.
Mayfield also said he is determined to prove he did not take illegal drugs in an effort to not only get him cleared to return to racing but also to help other drivers in the future.
"I've got to stand up for them right now, and I'm going to do that," Mayfield said. "If it makes a difference in the future on whether NASCAR changes their policy to prevent this from happening again, hopefully, it will do that."
Prior to the interview, Mayfield appeared on Charlotte radio station WBT to discuss the case. He claims that his May 1 test, which resulted in his initial suspension, produced a false positive reading caused by the prescription drug Adderall, which is used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and the allergy medication Claritin-D.
"It started off as a mistake, and then it has been snowballing from there, and I think that they [NASCAR officials] are not for sure how to get out of it now," Mayfield said on the show.
Mayfield's original suspension was over the May 1 test, and Mayfield obtained an injunction July 1 to keep NASCAR from enforcing that suspension. After a series of legal filings and decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals lifted the injunction earlier today - after Mayfield's radio appearance – in essence allowing NASCAR to suspend him until the appeals court can hear the case.
Mayfield attorney John Buric did not allow Mayfield to take a test during his radio appearance, which host Keith Larson had hoped he would do on air. Buric said Mayfield would test positive for amphetamine because of the Adderall.
"Amphetamine is a substance in Adderall," Buric said. "This will not reveal if he is positive or negative for methamphetamine. It's just not
going to do anything [to prove anything]."
So why do the results that Mayfield submitted to U.S. District Court of his July 6 independent test show no findings of methamphetamine nor amphetamine, considering that Mayfield's use of Adderall should show a positive result for amphetamine?
"There's an answer to that question, but that's so scientific that I can't get into all of it myself," Buric said outside the station.
Mayfield says he is prepared to give a hair sample now that his hair is long enough. NASCAR has said in court documents that there is no conclusive way to test a hair sample, but Mayfield's attorneys have said there is.
"We've been letting [my hair] grow out, grow out, grow out every week because we are in the process of going to do that [hair test]," Mayfield said on the radio show. "But to be an accurate test, it has to be so long. As you can see, it's pretty long for me right now. I have not cut my hair since May 1."
Mayfield said it is important to keeping talking and giving his story so his fans can hear him.
"[This radio station has] been talking to John [Buric] about coming down here and getting on the air and clearing the air on some stuff," Mayfield said outside the station. "I thought it was good."
