WHAT’S UP IN THE AIR RIGHT NOW?

I know there’s more to list, but these are the main ones that come to mind.

• Parts prices. The cost of engine leases, tire leases and anything else teams spend money on. Renegotiating those vendor contracts needs to happen ASAP. Brian Barnhart has made good progress in some areas while others demand a lot more attention, but as high profile topic, this one is still unresolved.

• The 2013 rules need to be solidified and ratified. I believe this has been unaffected by changing CEOs and will get done in the coming weeks.

• Lawsuits regarding Lotus, at least one team, the series, the fate of Lotus as an official engine supplier and some outstanding financial affairs with the marque are all up in the air.

• Aero kits and whether they will be introduced in 2013 has yet to be decided.

• Finding a replacement for IZOD, which almost left after Las Vegas 2011 and has dialed its activation and spending down to minimal levels, is a priority.

• Continental Tire and the topic of securing a new long-term tire supply contract from a vendor was an active item that was left untended.

• Expanding the 2013 schedule to possibly include a trip to the Mugello circuit in Italy that could/would bring a healthy sanction fee to boost IndyCar’s bottom line is still in development.

• Leader Circle entitlements, and how many cars that will receive those $1.2 million contracts next year, is undecided.

• Finding a few new/better/younger faces for the TV broadcasts, which had been afoot since summer, is a necessity.

• The (almost) universally unpopular 10-spot grid penalty for failed engines/premature engine changes was on the table for review and possible revision.

It’s a lot to do, and they were all getting done to varying degrees. How fast they’re handled with an interim CEO in place is the biggest question.

ROCKSTAR CEO

If you’ve hung with me this far—and thank you for those that did…I hope it didn’t require too much coffee or Red Bull—Part 2 is about to wind down with a few sidebars and miscellaneous musings.

Of the nearly 1000 article comments associated with Bernard’s firing on SPEED.com, the one written by “damattafan” carries the overwhelming sentiment voiced by open-wheel fans:

“I think I am done with Indy car. After attending the LBGP for 25+ consecutive years this is pretty much the last straw. Bernard brought the series to a whole new level, maybe 3 or 4 whole new levels. Dumbest move Indycar has ever made, including ‘The Split.’”

“Beaters8695” expressed the other, more hardline opinion that has also dominated the feedback.

“Unless IMS reinstates Randy, ironclads the rest of his contract, and apologizes profusely, I am done. I've been watching Indy Car every day of my life and this is the last straw. Never again!”

I can’t argue with either sentiment, yet Bernard’s firing also drew attention to a rather odd dynamic that had developed.

As one driver told me, a public uproar over losing a CEO, rather than an equal or greater uproar to solve IndyCar’s problems or promote its drivers, has been troubling.

“Can you imagine NASCAR fans getting pissed because [NASCAR president] Mike Helton was fired? They wouldn't give a damn as long as Dale Jr., Jimmie Johnson and the rest are out racing on Sunday.

“Maybe the drivers need Randy's PR machine because I don't remember this much backlash when even a top IndyCar driver lost his job.”

It’s not a popular position to hold, but I can’t fault his line of thinking.

It was good, I’ll admit, to have IndyCar’s CEO engaging the media and helping to provide content each weekend on the series’ progress and developments that made it into the local papers and websites, but when IndyCar’s CEO started to become better known than a lot of his drivers, balance was lost.

Some would say many of today’s drivers are too boring to present to the media, but that doesn’t mean promotional efforts should be curtailed.

When a CEO achieves rockstar status, even by mistake, and his drivers--the series’ marquee promotional tool--aren’t being pushed to those same media outlets to raise IndyCar’s profile, a re-think is in order.

The lesson here, hopefully, will be that IndyCar’s next CEO, no matter how engaging or personable, shouldn’t be more beloved than his or her drivers.

THE INDY CAR CEO ANTHEM

Although it isn’t specific to Bernard or any one Indy car boss, I woke up Monday morning with a song from one of my favorite bands, We Are Scientists, and their tune “Ghouls” playing in my head.

As I emerged from my stupor, what had been about five minutes of just the instrumental for Ghouls running through my mind evolved into the music and the first line from the song, “We all recognize that I'm the problem here,” playing over and over again.

With the Randy Bernard bombshell from the day before still fresh in my head, it wasn’t a coincidence that I woke myself up with a song I now refer to as “The IndyCar CEO Anthem” on a steady loop.

Bernard’s firing is at least the 10th Indy car CEO/president change I can think of since I started following open-wheel racing, and I’m fairly well convinced I’ll see 10 more before I’m gone, so for those who come next, you might want to memorize this sucker from top to bottom and make it your new mantra.

We all recognize that I'm the problem here
We all recognize that I'm the problem here

It's impossible to know or so it seems
What I'm supposed to do with you on anything
I know the blame this time is going to fall on me
'Cause we all recognize that I'm the problem here

Can't help but feel attacked, what's that supposed to mean
I know I won't relax or act like it's no big deal
This happens all the time; it's kind of our routine
But we all recognize that I'm the problem here

We all recognize that I'm the problem here
We all recognize that I'm the problem here
We all recognize that I'm the problem here
We all recognize that I'm the problem

TURBO

As some commented after I posted Part 1, and despite saying I wasn’t going to rehash all of the positives about Randy that Robin Miller documented for us, it wouldn’t hurt to close this story by looking at one legacy item that could prove to be Bernard’s greatest accomplishment as IndyCar CEO.

As a byproduct of establishing an office and entertainment division in Hollywood, DreamWorks came to the series to collaborate on the animated Indy 500-themed kids’ movie “Turbo” that will debut in 2013.

I’ve had a number of drivers positively gush about “Turbo” and the impact they expect it to make—to add a new generation of IndyCar fans that, for a variety of known reasons, have been missing. Even a few of the hardcore cynics in the paddock have been excited about what the movie could do to remind the country that IndyCar racing is alive and well and deserves their attention.

While IndyCar continues to look for ways to promote itself while being choked by .3 Nielsen ratings, “Turbo,” which is Bernard’s baby, could finally move the needle in the right direction.

Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com's Auto Racing Editor, and covers the IndyCar Series. Before joining SPEED, Pruett worked in open-wheel racing for 20 years as a mechanic and engineer. He also contributes to RACER, Road & Track and Racecar Engineering. Follow him @MarshallPruett.

The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEED.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or SPEED