Tony George has left the board of Hulman & Company with immediate effect, citing a potential conflict of interest between his remaining on the board of the owners of the IZOD
IndyCar Series and his involvement with a takeover bid by a group of team owners.
The announcement was made on Friday afternoon, and was the first official confirmation that George was indeed fronting a buy-out bid for
IndyCar by a number of team owners.
However, in making the announcement, Hulman & Company president and CEO Jeff Belskus insisted that the series was not for sale and that the owners were not considering any offer that had been submitted to it for a buy-out by any party.
"Tony George has made the difficult decision to resign from the board because of his involvement with a group that has recently expressed an interest in purchasing the Hulman & Company-owned
IndyCar organization," said Belskus.
"While the business is not for sale and no offers to sell it have been considered or are being considered, we applaud Tony's efforts to resolve the appearance of a conflict and appreciate the gravity of this decision," he added.
George was previously president of the
Indianapolis Motor Speedway from 1990-2004 which is also owned by Hulman & Company. He set up the Indy Racing League which split away from CART as the sanctioning body of open wheel racing in the US leading to a decade-long schism in the sport until reunification in 2008. George also set up and ran Vision Racing, and is now co-owner of Ed Carpenter Racing with his stepson, owner-driver Ed Carpenter.
"Tony has been involved with our businesses for many years and has contributed significantly through his leadership role with IMS and
IndyCar and as a member of this board," said Belskus, who added that George's place on the Hulman & Company board woud not be filled. "We wish Tony much success in the future."
In response, George said in a statement: "I realize that my recent efforts to explore the possibility of acquiring
IndyCar represent the appearance of a conflict, and it is in everyone's best interest that I resign from the Hulman & Company board.
"It goes without saying that I want to do what is best for this organisation," he added.
The latest round of takeover rumours surfaced in the
Sports Business Journal at the beginning of October, with the newspaper's sources stating that the board of Hulman & Company had received a definite takeover offer from an investment group said to include Chip Ganassi, Roger Penske, Michael Andretti and Kevin Kalkhoven (co-owner of KV Racing Technology), and fronted by George.