Tony George ousted from IMS

I knew it was just a matter of time until pheonix attendance got tossed out there ....

So predictable ic

Fwiw..... I'm hearing the 700mil # is coming from the original 'leaker'....
And is the number that flying around the room in the post 500 board meeting initially referenced in robins original article

Blancvino, Ken , who knows about private company accounting? Sure, Robin is, as you said "macro," correct and was ahead of everybody on the story. I agree.

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Originally Posted by Mark in Oshawa

IC...does it make the story any more palatable to you if the Hulmans lost 600 million? REALLY? Splitting hairs wont change the fact that Miller had the meat and potatoes of the story right on and all the Miller haters said he was creating a S*#$Storm where it wasn't warranted. Turns out he had Tony being booted off the leadership position he had at the Speedway and that the family was tired of backing his projects. Whether it was 600 or 700 million dollars is of no interest except to the sisters, who likely were the source of Miller's story.

The fact is, Tony spent a lot of money winning a war for an entity that he devalued greatly winning.....and as it turns out, the sisters are not happy about it.

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I would say he won the battle but never won the war. The war still goes on and he is now out of the picture.

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Originally Posted by indycool

Chap, I'm not referring to the rest of Robin's story, which certainly scooped the world. But he referred to $600m very recently in a piece and it became $700m in the last one. If you put together all the different attendance figures he's used for races at Phoenix, you'd find a wide gap, depending on how badly he wanted to make his point.

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IC, I'm not doubting you per se, I'm just trying the article you're referring to. If you could send a link, that would be great. The articles I saw only quoted the $600 million figure, but again, whether 600 or 700, he is saying he is calling them estimates, which he is free to update when he gets new information.

BTW, IC, I'm going to Columbus, Ohio for my cousin's wedding,and I'm trying to fit in a trip to Indy. If I make it, I might meet you at New Castle Motorsports Park for Karting. :D

Chap, will it be new information or Robin just stepping it up?

At least, from this discussion, we know from where it started.

I live on the west side of Indy but can make it to New Castle. PM me and I'll see if I can make it.

Why just step it up just $100 million, why 300 or 400? Like I said, at this point, I think you'd have to give RM the benefit of the doubt that he is trying to be accurate. RM is not afraid to take on the most controversial stories, so it's important to be accurate, since the story, if true, will have to stand the test of time; and his reputation, which he guards jealously like all reporters with any integrity, would take a huge hit if is inaccurate. Notice that IMS is only not responding to those fugures, but I haven't seen where they have denied them. Again, if you have a link to the SPEEDTV.com article that I may have missed, please send link. The most recents he wrote that I saw only him quote the $600 million figure.

If I'm able to make to Indy, I'll let you know.

And remember, RM said estimates. That means he's trying to be accurate based on the info he was able to confirm.

Second page of July 2 column:

http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/artic...eorge-era//P2/

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Originally Posted by indycool

Second page of July 2 column:

http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/artic...eorge-era//P2/

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OK, thanks for sending that, IC, I don't know why I couldn't find it. Like I said, I didn't doubt he wrote that, but this still doesn't strike me as playing fast and loose with numbers. He's still in the ballpark of his original figure, he may have updated info, hell, it could have been a typo on the SPEEDTV.com end. I have noticed that sometimes the site mashes words together along with other small mistakes. I still maintain that RM retains his integrity and deserves the benefit of the doubt, this isn't that big a deal. Tune in to Wind Tunnel on Sunday (where he is almost certain to be a guest) and see what he says, and if he says $700 million, see how he explains it. Not to be repetitive, but as long as he says "estimated", he's not obligated to cast the figure in granite, it's based on the latest information he was getting from his inside sources.

Ken instantly mentioned that I brought up the Phoenix attendance figures Robin used in various stories and it was something like 8-10 different ones. He worked for CART at the time. He's back to being a journalist now. But the very point Ken made about me jumping on RM's attendance figures at Phoenix indicates others have memories of before, too. And again, I give him credit for the "scoop" and I trust what I presume to be his sources, although at least some could be second hand.