The Auto Channel
The Largest Independent Automotive Research Resource
The Largest Independent Automotive Research Resource
Official Website of the New Car Buyer

Batman Races to NASCAR With Themed Car Unveiling

5 August 1998

Batman Races to NASCAR With Themed Car Unveiling; Action, DC Comics & Robert Yates Racing Create Merchandising Program

    PHOENIX--(BW SportsWire)--Aug. 4, 1998--Action Performance Companies Inc.(TM) (NASDAQ/NMS:ACTN), DC Comics and Robert Yates Racing Tuesday announced that the companies will officially unveil a Batman-themed race car for NASCAR's Dale Jarrett on Aug. 22 in Bristol, Tenn. at the Goody's Headache Powder 500 NASCAR Winston Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
    The Action/DC Comic-designed Batman-themed car is part of the first motorsports cross-licensing merchandising program featuring the world's most popular superhero.
    The exclusive Batman-themed paint scheme will be featured in merchandise, such as collectible die-cast, apparel and souvenir products, for Jarrett, driver for the Robert Yates Racing team, and his No. 88 Quality Care Service/Ford Credit Taurus.
    The press event, which will include a surprise mystery guest, takes place trackside during pre-race ceremonies in front of thousands of fans. Joining Jarrett at the event will be his teammate Kenny Irwin, team owner Robert Yates, Action Performance Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Fred W. Wagenhals, DC Comics/Warner Bros. Consumer Products Senior Vice President, Advtg. & Promotion Joel Ehrlich and a representative from Charlotte Motor Speedway.
    Jarrett will debut his Batman race car on Oct. 4, in Charlotte, N.C. at the UAW-GM Quality 500 NASCAR Winston Cup race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
    Said Wagenhals, "Action is thrilled to be a part of bringing the heroic image of Batman to NASCAR. This partnership with DC Comics and Robert Yates Racing offers valuable synergies to the companies in promoting the excitement of NASCAR and the recognition of one of our biggest superheroes, Batman, to potential new fans."
    Said Ehrlich, "The partnership between superheroes and motorsports is incredibly exciting. Batman is bigger than life, just like a NASCAR race. With the help of our friends at Action Performance, Charlotte Motor Speedway, Ford and Texaco, this will be the most exciting day ever in sports."
    Action will market a variety of exclusively designed merchandise to fans and collectors. Program merchandise will be available for the first time trackside at the Bristol Motor Speedway event and then during other major NASCAR events throughout the next few months. Action-produced merchandise will also be available through the company's usual distribution channels.
    DC Comics, a division of Warner Bros., has a 60-year history of innovative publishing and utilizing its characters to support the marketing of products. From its early alliance with Kellogg's on the classic Superman radio programs that debuted in 1939, to the first online service devoted to comics, DC has demonstrated its heroes' abilities to leap from the printed page to conquer other media.
    Action Performance Companies Inc., is the leader in the design, marketing and distribution of licensed motorsports merchandise. Its products include a broad range of motorsports-related apparel, souvenirs, die-cast car replica collectibles and other memorabilia.
    The company markets and distributes products through a variety of channels, including the 135,000-member Racing Collectables Club of America (RCCA), trackside at racing events, mass retail department stores, and a nationwide wholesale network of approximately 5,000 specialty dealers and distributors.