A meeting between high-level National Hot Rod Association executives—including NHRA President Tom Compton—and
Gov. Mitch Daniels and members of the Indiana Economic Development Corp. has fueled speculation that the drag racing group
might be looking to significantly expand its presence here.
Long-time radio veteran Charlie Morgan is leaving his post heading up broadcasting for Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Indy
Racing League to lead Emmis Communications Corp. radio stations in Indianapolis.
New Indianapolis Motor Speedway CEO Jeff Belskus has long been a behind-the-scenes figure at IMS. As the new leader of the
Brickyard and the Indy Racing League, he faces several challenging issues, including gaining the confidence of the racing
community.
New Speedway leader Jeff Belskus speaks with IBJ about his new job and the near-term challenges and long-term future of the
operations he oversees.
Allstate Corp. is ending its five-year run as the lead sponsor of the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard NASCAR race in Indianapolis,
company officials said today. The announcement comes after this year’s race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway
suffered a 20-percent attendance drop from last year’s event.
Reports of a Hulman-George family feud proved dead-on accurate when matriarch Mari Hulman-George issued a statement June
30 confirming the ouster of her son, Tony, as CEO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the family business empire. Shortly
thereafter, Tony George also resigned as CEO of the Indy Racing League.
A management shake-up at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway has some in the motorsports industry thinking major changes could
be on the horizon at the fabled race venue—maybe as soon as next year.
California-based DB Schenker is the official freight logistics sponsor of the IRL, and South Carolina-based Kymco USA is the
official scooter and off-road utility vehicle of the IRL and Firestone Indy Lights.
I went away after the Indianapolis 500 once again convinced I’d experienced the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, but I didn’t
view the race with a critical eye like my pal Robin Miller did.
Indy Racing League founder Tony George dropped a bombshell in December when he told an industry group that he would shut down
the open-wheel series if it didn’t break into the black soon.
A decision by a startup Formula One team to set up shop in Charlotte, N.C., is fueling debate over whether Indianapolis still
is the self-proclaimed "motorsports capital of the world."
The Grand Prix at Long Beach April 19 scored a 0.5 TV rating for the Indy Racing League, according to New York-based Nielsen
Media Research. That’s the same rating the race earned last year on ESPN 2 when it was the swan song for CART.
The Ball State University victory over Central Michigan University Nov. 19, televised live on ESPN2 and seen in more than
1.6 million homes, ranks as the most-viewed and highest-rated college football game ever for a Tuesday or Wednesday night
on the network.
Indy Racing League driver Danica Patrick topped golfer Tiger Woods, quarterback Tom Brady and Super Bowl champion Eli Manning
as the most searched-for athlete in 2008, according to America Online’s annual list of top Web, mobile and video searches.
Chip Ganassi’s NASCAR team is teaming with Dale Earnhardt Inc. where Max Siegel has served as president of global operations
since early 2007, and the former Baker & Daniels attorney may be among many laid off in the merger.
A group of motorsports journalists stood open-mouthed along the wall of the Texas Motor Speedway in 1999 as they watched 19-year-old
Sarah Fisher, fresh from the sprint car and dirt track circuits, zip past veteran open-wheel racers Buddy Lazier and Billy
Boat. What happened to Fisher over the next nine years is equally amazing–and mystifying–to those same motorsports experts
who watched her in Texas.
In the end, the catastrophic sponsorship shift from open-wheel racing to NASCAR became too much to ignore, driving the long-divided
sides of Champ Car and the Indy Racing League back into a unified series.
Shows provided by IMS Productions, the video production arm of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, are among the top draws for Joost, a high-profile Internet provider of television content launched last October.
The Indy Racing League will roll out category sponsorship deals with soft drink, energy drink and motor oil brands in the
next two months. IRL officials declined to divulge which companies the deals are with, but said each are multiyear, multimillion-dollar
deals.
