("Off the record".
Well, I presume Ike did not record (which would have been illegal presuming Less was in MD), there is no "record" to prove the he said /she said.
But Les certainly did allegedly disclose selectively information far different from the company's public statements.
The company uses "multiple months" in written disclosures to the full not "couple months" in a selective disclosure not recorded.
Also, in Dec they used the future tense. One might argue that was ambiguous, but it was not disclosed it had started.
The fact that it is in a private phone call does not change the fact that he is making a disclosure. It was not a forward looking statement, so he can not use that out.