Spencer Gallagher celebrating his win at Talladega Superspeedway this past weekend (photo - NASCAR via Getty Images)NASCAR Suspends Gallagher Indefinitely for Substance Abuse May 2, 2018 NASCAR NASCAR issued the following statement this morning: Spencer Gallagher has been suspended indefinitely from NASCAR for violating the sanctioning body’s substance abuse policy. On May 1, Gallagher was found to have violated Section 19 (NASCAR’s substance abuse policy) of the 2018 NASCAR rule book. Gallagher has agreed to participate in the Road to Recovery Program. Gallagher was the popular underdog winner in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Talladega Superspeedway this past weekend. He has responded to the penalty with the following statement: “I recently have had a positive result in a NASCAR drug screen which has violated NASCAR’s substance abuse policy,” said Gallagher. “I want to assure everyone in the NASCAR community this one time error in judgment will never happen again. I am taking the steps to enroll in the Road to Recovery program supported by NASCAR. I would like to say that I am sorry to all of the GMS organization for my actions, especially my team and team owner, who have worked so hard this year and have put faith in me. I also want to apologize to NASCAR, Chevrolet and my fans for letting them down. I have not upheld the behavior that is expected of me. I promise you all here and know, I will do whatever it takes to make this right.” Gallagher’s race team, GMS Racing – owned by his father, Maurice Gallagher, issued the following statement in response to the penalty: “GMS Racing was notified that driver Spencer Gallagher gave a positive result from a NASCAR drug screen,” said Mike Beam, President of GMS Racing. “GMS fully supports NASCAR’s policy on substance abuse and we do not condone this type of behavior. First and foremost, our entire organization wants to apologize to NASCAR, our sponsors, teammates and fans due to this policy violation. Spencer has agreed to participate in NASCAR’s Road to Recovery program. A substitute driver will be announced at a later date.” The statement from NASCAR does not indicate when Gallagher was tested; his Dash4Cash eligibility for Dover this weekend has been rescinded and Ryan Sieg becomes the fourth driver eligible to win the bonus.
