IndyCar will not be sold because of the strong links it enjoys with the Indy 500 and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. So saysf parent company Hulman & Company's incoming CEO Mark Miles, who insists the series is an integral part of the company's motorsport plans.
IndyCar founder and former CEO Tony George resigned from the board several weeks ago due to a conflict of interest over his involvement with a bid to purchase the series. That was rebuffed at the time, with parent company Hulman & Co. issuing a statement insisting that IndyCar is not for sale.
Miles, whose new position at the helm of Hulman & Co. was announced on Tuesday, reiterated that the aim was to grow, rather than sell, IndyCar.
"The series is not for sale. The board is very clear about that," Miles said. "We believe that the destinies of IMS, the Indianapolis 500 and the IndyCar Series are inextricably welded, woven together. So we are determined to grow the IndyCar Series as a sport, and that'll help the Indianapolis 500 in the process, and I think you can see us working very diligently to grow the business.
"For the reasons strategically that I already mentioned, we just think it's so important that the most powerful event on the series and the series itself are marketed and promoted and scheduled and run together."
• Click here for the full Q&A with Mark Miles and IndyCar CEO Jeff Belskus on IndyCar's future.