FIA bans former F1, IndyCar driver Tomáš Enge for failed drug test

Filed under: Motorsports, Europe, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs



Just a week after NASCAR took away AJ Allmendinger's keys indefinitely, the result of a failed drug test, Motorsport.com is reporting that the FIA has sidelined Tomáš Enge for a similar infraction. Enge also failed a recent drug test, earning an 18-month ban from racing for what would be his second such infraction.

Back in 2002, Enge finished the Formula 3000 season atop the standings, but had his title stripped after testing positive for marijuana use. According to the report, Enge denies that he's back on the drug, saying that he has chronic health problems and has asked the FIA for an exemption from its drug testing rules for medications related to his cardiovascular problems. Enge intends to fight the suspension in the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland.

Most recently, Enge has been racing in the GT1 sports car series, though he drove in Formula One in 2001 and raced in IndyCar during the 2005 season. His greatest successes have come behind the wheel of sports cars, earning a class victory in the 2003 24 Hours of Le Mans behind the wheel of a Ferrari and winning the 2009 European Le Mans Series LMP1 championship driving an Aston Martin.FIA bans former F1, IndyCar driver Tomáš Enge for failed drug test originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 04 Aug 2012 15:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.



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So, marijuana is a performance enhancing drug?

 

It says that where?

 

Ok, ok... I'm being facetious by comparing it to performance enhancers, but I dislike the FIA's decision.

 

Why? Because they stripped his title for using a drug that funds violence around the world and is illegal in pretty much every country FIA operates in? Never mind that it most likely violates terms of any contracts he's signed surrounding the sport...

 

I can understand and respect that these are the rules. If the rules are broken, you will receive punishment. Fair enough.

However...

Why is marijuana so bad that it remains a Schedule I controlled substance, yet alcohol, which has a proven record of causing more harm to self and others, is not? How about cigarettes? There's much worse chemical compounds in modern cigarettes.

Do I think that marijuana can be abused? In the hands of a consumer with the lack of personal control, anything can be abused.

In regards to funding the violence, I don't like that people die at the hands of other people, but people are trying to control the supply because it is illegal.