Igdalsky, 35, is adding CEO to his resumé. His younger brother Nick will be chief operating officer and executive vice president. Their sister Ashley will be secretary-treasurer.
While Doc's decision appeared impulsive, he says he thought about it for a long time.
"When you have a [multimillion-dollar] family business like ours, you can't take chances," Doc said Tuesday. "A long time ago, I set up a trust. We have an executive committee made up of our three kids, my wife [Rose] and our accountant. They make all the decisions. Brandon, Nick and Ashley run the day-to-day operations."
Doc said the racetrack will stay in the family until the grandchildren's children inherit it. Pocono, Dover and Indianapolis are the only tracks hosting NASCAR Sprint Cup races that aren't owned by the France family's International Speedway Corp. or Bruton Smith's Speedway Motorsports Inc.
Denis McGlynn, president and CEO of Dover Motorsports Inc., has known the Mattiolis since McGlynn started at Dover International Speedway in Delaware as public relations director in the early 1970s.
"They are both unique in our world," McGlynn said. "They totally immersed themselves in the sport back in a time when there was considerable risk. Like us, they went through many tough years and, thanks to who they are, succeeded.
"They're an all-American story. They were fed up with what they were doing [Rose is a podiatrist] and bought a spinach patch [where the track is situated]."
Doc estimates their business holdings are worth $600 million.
My first Pocono race was an IndyCar event in '72. Since then, I've covered Pocono's ups and downs for the Daily News. Doc and I have had a cordial relationship, although "occasionally" he didn't like my questions. A couple of samples:
