ESPN IndyCar

INDIANAPOLIS -- Racing at more than 200 mph is tough enough. No one wants to find themselves wheel-to-wheel with someone who's under the influence of drugs.

"If we're out there driving at those speeds," said Ryan Hunter-Reay, who will start from the final row in Sunday's Indianapolis 500, "it's good to know everyone has a clear head."

The Indy Racing League conducts random drug testing under a policy that was beefed up before the 2008 season. But the drug-testing debate was stirred up again this month when NASCAR racer Jeremy Mayfield was suspended over a positive random test that remains clouded in secrecy. Mayfield was the first driver to be suspended under that series' new policy, toughened up for this season after former stock car driver Aaron Fike admitted using heroin -- even on days he raced.

On Thursday, The Associated Press surveyed the entire 33-driver field for the Indy 500 and found general agreement that the testing procedures for open-wheel racing are sufficient to weed out anyone who uses recreational drugs.

Still, there was a wide range of debate on the touchy subject. Graham Rahal said he would like to have more random testing. Oriol Servia believes there should be just as much emphasis on performance-enhancing drugs as there is on mind-altering substances. And longtime driver Davey Hamilton said there's little doubt he's raced against guys who were under the influence during his career.

The AP survey found at least nine drivers have been randomly tested this year, while 20 said they haven't been screened since their preseason physical. The other four drivers said they couldn't remember when they had their last test or refused to answer.

"We don't get tested nearly that often," said Rahal, son of former IndyCar champion Bobby Rahal and one of the up-and-coming stars in the series. "I don't think it would be a bad thing to do more testing. I'm kind of curious to see if anybody is messing around."

Rahal stressed that he doesn't think he races against anyone who is abusing drugs, but he wasn't so kind with his assessment of NASCAR, which has come under fire for refusing to reveal what drug Mayfield was using.

"Open-wheel racing has always been a more clean-cut sport than NASCAR or any of the other sports really," Rahal said. "I'll bet there's more NASCAR drivers doing it ... but they just don't want to say who they are."

The 46-year-old Hamilton, who hasn't raced regularly since a severe crash at Texas Motor Speedway in 2001, qualified at Indy for the third straight year. The Idaho native is a strong supporter of the IRL's drug-testing policy, especially in light of his own experiences coming through the ranks.

"I had questions that someone was doing it, but I never put two and two together," he said. "They were jeopardizing my safety as well. I guarantee you that some guys I raced with over the years were definitely under the influence."

Vitor Meira took a different path to Indy than Hamilton -- the Brazilian raced on developmental series in South America and Europe -- but he had similar suspicions.

"You always know people do things," Meira said. "But I never stopped to think, 'Hey, this guy can put me in danger.' Maybe it was because I was young, or maybe it was because I was usually racing on street courses, which are way less dangerous [than ovals because of the lower speeds]. I never thought that way, but that's the way you should think."

Meira was among the nine drivers who said they've undergone random testing this year.

"I got tested three days ago," he said. "It's a very professional procedure. An official comes and tells you that you have been selected to do a drug test. You have an hour to show up. If you don't show up, well, I don't know what the consequences are, but they are not good."

The IndyCar testing program allows the series to conduct annual, random and "targeted" tests -- those that are administered because of a driver's behavior or other suspicions. In one section, the policy lists 23 potential reasons for a targeted test, everything from a driver actually being observed using drugs (or alcohol on race day) to needle marks to slurred speech.

The IRL doesn't list the drugs banned under its policy, saying it needs flexibility to keep up with new or unexpected substances; NASCAR also does not have a specific list for drivers, saying it reserves for the right to test for anything.

The IRL also won't discuss its testing procedure, most notably the handling of "A" and "B" samples, a basic tenet of any doping program.

"We are confidential on how we do the sampling," said John Griffin, vice president of public relations for the IRL. "We disclose a lot, but we can't disclose that."

The IRL's drug-testing policy is mainly designed to weed out those who use recreational substances or abuse alcohol, Griffin acknowledged, saying that was the philosophy of Brian Barnhart, the president of competition and racing operations.

"Performance drugs are not a priority in Brian's eyes as much as the others," Griffin said. "To Brian, our drug-testing policy is mainly about safety. When you're talking about recreational drugs or alcohol, whatever, that's going to have much more of an effect on a driver's ability to drive the car than performance drugs."

But Servia, a longtime open-wheel racer from Spain, doesn't understand why the IRL -- and most racing series, for that matter -- can't focus on both categories of drugs.

"Of course, they should test for the other stuff because you don't want guys driving around in an intoxicated way. But why not performance drugs?" he asked.

Servia said the normal heart rate during a two-hour IndyCar race is about 160 beats per minute. Those who took performance-enhancing drugs theoretically could do more training and reduce their heart rate, which might improve their chances of winning.

"If you can get your heart rate to 140 instead of 160, you'll be more relaxed, you'll think better, you'll be more clear," he said. "The better trained you are, the better you are in the car."

Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press