Junior & Shaq Set For Head-to-Head Race at Concord Speedway

Subject: Junior and Shaq ro race at Concord Speedway.

Date: Friday June 17, 2010
Further Info: Larry Thomas: lthomas@concordspeedway.net (704) 782 4221



Media Contact:
Mike Davis
Communications Director, JR Motorsports
704.799.4810

mdavis@dalejr.com



Junior & Shaq Set For Head-to-Head Race at Concord Speedway


Fans invited next Wednesday to watch Dale Earnhardt Jr. & Shaquille O’Neal battle on track during taping of ABC’s hit show “Shaq Vs.”


CONCORD, N.C. (June 18, 2010) – The challenge has been issued and accepted. Four-time NBA champion Shaquille O’Neal has swapped his size-23 basketball shoes for racing Velcro; traded his breezy, cool basketball jersey for a heavy, fire-retardant driver’s suit; forgone the familiarity of basketball hardwood for the cramped quarters of a stock-car cockpit – all 7-foot-1, 325 pounds of him.

His reason: challenge NASCAR’s most popular driver and winner of more than 40 NASCAR-sanctioned races, Dale Earnhardt Jr., to a one-on-one race in a test of skill, endurance, and speed.

The competition will be featured in the second season of Shaq Vs., the popular television series that is part of ABC’s new summer season. The show’s premise is simple: O’Neal takes his top-level skills and athletic prowess from the basketball court and transfers it to a completely different and unfamiliar sporting event.

The first season pitted Shaq in a head-to-head match-up against Albert Pujols in a homerun-hitting contest, Michael Phelps in a swimming race, Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh in beach volleyball, and Oscar de la Hoya in a boxing match.

Shaq Vs, which is produced by Media Rights Capital in association with dick clark productions, will begin airing its second season in early August. Season Two will not rely solely on sporting matches but will also feature fun, comedic non-sports competitions such as a spelling bee contest and dance crew battle. Each will test O’Neal’s adaptability, but perhaps none more challenging than maneuvering a 3,500-pound stock car with more than 800 horsepower against Earnhardt Jr., winner of the Daytona 500 and 18 NASCAR Sprint Cup races.

The race between O’Neal and Earnhardt Jr. will take place at 4 p.m. ET on Wed., June 23, at Concord Speedway, a tricky, half-mile tri-oval that features some of the best weekly racing in North Carolina. The event is open to the public free-of-charge. Gates will open at 1 p.m. ET. No cameras or phones will be allowed inside the facility. Terms of the race will be negotiated by O’Neal and Earnhardt Jr. on the day of the race.

MEDIA NOTE

Please note the media is not permitted to cover the actual race event. Shaq Vs. Season Two interview and coverage requests should be directed to Edwin Escobar (818.460.7758 / Edwin.Escobar@abc.com ) or Carolyn Nurnberg (212.843.9316 / Cnurnberg@rubenstein.com).

“SHAQ vs. JUNIOR” EVENT DETAILS

When: Wed., June 23, 2010 (Race starts at 4 p.m. ET / Gates open at 1 p.m. ET)
Where: Concord Speedway / 7940 U.S. Highway 601 South, Concord, NC 28025

Notes: The show will be taped. By attending event you agree to have your likeness shown on television. No cameras, phones (of any kind) or outside recording devices will be allowed inside. Please leave them in your car. Parking is limited. Please share a ride, when possible.

Social Media & Web Info: For more information on Shaq Vs., please visit http://www.abc.go.com/.  For up-to-the-minute information on Wednesday’s taping, please visit www.Facebook.com/DaleJr and http://www.concordspeedway.net/,  or follow us on Twitter at @ConcordSpeedway and @JRMotorsports. Directions to the speedway can be found at http://www.concordspeedway.net/.



ABOUT SHAQ VS SEASON 2

Shaq Vs will premiere its second season on ABC, Tuesday, August 3. Each episode in Season Two will not rely solely on sporting matches, but will also feature fun, comedic non-sports competitions as well, such as a spelling bee contest or a dance crew battle among others to be named. Shaq Vs is produced by Media Rights Capital in association with dick clark productions. Orly Adelson, Will Staeger and Barry Adelman of dick clark productions, Shaquille O’Neal, Trice Barto, Perry Rogers and Steve Nash serve as executive producers.



ABOUT JR MOTORSPORTS

JR Motorsports is the management company and racing operation for Dale Earnhardt Jr., NASCAR’s seven-time Most Popular Driver and winner of more than 40 NASCAR-sanctioned races.JR Motorsports competes in multiple racing divisions, including the NASCAR Nationwide Series.In 2008 JRM enjoyed a breakout season with four Nationwide Series victories between its two teams.The company followed suit with four more wins in 2009.The JR Motorsports facilities are based out of Mooresville, N.C., and include the JR Nation retail store, Hammerhead Entertainment, and DEJ Realty.For more information on JR Motorsports, visit http://www.dalejr.com/.



Media Contact:
Mike Davis
Communications Director, JR Motorsports
704.799.4810
mdavis@dalejr.com