MILLER: No Cure For IndyCar’s Stupidity

In the 44 years I’ve covered Indy car racing, nothing compares to the spineless, devious and classless treatment of Randy Bernard. It was as unprofessional as it was unnecessary and certainly a black eye for a series that is the laughing stock of motorsports today.

From the phonies who sat in the board meeting last month and endorsed Bernard’s budget/schedule to the embarrassing vote of confidence for him on Friday to that insulting press release Sunday claiming that he was stepping down, it stinks on every level.

From the car owners who backstabbed and plotted against him to Tony George’s relentless pursuit of power to the supposed brain trust of the Hulman & Company board, this was a senseless murder of a good man.

The worst CEO in the long, sad history of USAC/CART/IRL/Champ Car wouldn’t have deserved that kind of treatment, let alone a guy who worked tirelessly for three years to try and make Indy cars relevant again.

He inherited a wreck, rife with distrust and incompetence that had no leadership and no plan for new cars and engines. It was bleeding money and hadn’t had a fresh idea in a decade.

Bernard seemed to have a new idea every day, from starting a relationship with Hollywood’s Dreamworks for a movie to trying to entice NASCAR stars to a rich finale to creating a fund for non-leader’s circle members. They didn’t all work but he clearly saw that the old business model wasn’t working. More Miller at Speed.com