Incoming Hulman & Co. CEO Mark Miles on Thursday spoke to IndyCar team owners, manufacturer officials, drivers and "anyone involved with the sport," and Miles "delivered," according to Curt Cavin of the INDIANAPOLIS STAR. Miles will not take over until Dec. 17, but said that his goal was to "provide a message of calmness in the sport's first gathering since IndyCar Series CEO Randy Bernard stepped down Oct. 28." Miles said Hulman & Co. is "committed to growth and stability and making the right moves to move this sport upward." Cavin writes Miles "doesn't know the sport, per se, but he knows its landscape and understands the challenges ahead." NASCAR and IndyCar team owner Roger Penske said of Miles, "Seemed like a smart guy, good guy." Miles "didn’t shy away" from Penske's inquiry regarding IndyCar's next CEO. It will be "neither Miles nor IMS CEO Jeff Belskus," who is serving on an interim basis. Miles said, "We’re just beginning to begin to think about it. It starts with a very clear understanding of what we have to get done and what attributes we need. I do think it has to be somebody who really understands racing" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 12/7). Miles said, "With Randy (Bernard's) departure we welcome and are appreciative of Jeff’s willingness to step in as interim IndyCar CEO, but that is an interim situation. He is the man right now who is going to make the decisions that are necessary to be made going into the 2013 season. It should be clear that he has the authority and the responsibility, but we don’t think that’s the long-term situation. So, we’ll be looking for a leadership change deliberately" (INDYSTAR.com, 12/6).
BERNARD CLOSE TO NEW ROLE? The INDY STAR's Cavin notes Bernard is "expected to be announced as the new CEO of RFD-TV." That is an "agriculture-based cable network based in Omaha" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 12/7).
