NASCAR Drivers to Give a Total of $500,000 in Cash Prizes To Their Favorite Charities; Fans Can Enter for a Chance to Win $1 Million or A 2010 ROUSH Mustang

EL SEGUNDO, Calif., April 12, 2010 - The battle lines are drawn for the first ever DIRECTV NASCAR® Head-2-Head Knockout competition - an innovative new bracket-format competition that will showcase rivalries among 32 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ drivers as they go mano a mano each week. During this past Saturday's Subway Fresh Fit 600 broadcast, DIRECTV and FOX announced the 32 drivers and bracket seedings in the high-stakes contest for charity, through which fans also have a chance to win $1 million*. In just the past two days, more than 10,000 people have entered the competition.

While head-to-head bragging rights will undoubtedly be motivation for the drivers, the stakes are high as they compete for an opportunity to earn additional prize money and to give a total of $500,000 to the charities of their choice as they successfully move on through each round of the single-elimination brackets.

These head-to-head "races within the races" will play out over the course of the next four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ events, and in classic "bracket-tournament" fashion, fans can enter their own bracket predictions at www.DIRECTV.com/NASCAR for the chance to win $1 million or a 2010 Roush Mustang. Fans will need to enter their bracket predictions quickly with the entry period now open and closing on Sunday, April 18 at 3 p.m. EDT. This unique bracket-format competition breaks new ground for NASCAR® racing as it marks the first time drivers will be pitted in one-on-one battles for supremacy on the pavement.

The competition divides 32 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ drivers, seeded one through eight, into four regional brackets: Turn 1, Turn 2, Turn 3 and Turn 4, with each driver going head-to-head against a new competitor each week in a single-elimination format. Participating drivers advance to subsequent rounds by finishing higher than the driver they're matched up against each week. In classic "tournament" fashion, rounds one through three will narrow the field down to "The Fastest Four" who will trade paint for DIRECTV'S NASCAR® Head-2-Head Knockout Championship at Darlington Raceway on May 8.

The Turn 1 group features number one seed Kurt Busch, taking on the eighth-seeded Elliott Sadler. Also featured in the Turn 1 grouping are NASCAR favorites Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Carl Edwards. In Turn 2, all eyes will be on top-seeded Mark Martin as he goes head-to-head against David Ragan. In Turn 3, Jimmie Johnson takes on Regan Smith and Turn 4 rounds out the bracket with Jeff Gordon going up against Bobby Labonte. For the complete bracket details, see the accompanying bracket sheet or visit www.DIRECTV.com/NASCAR.

Consumers participating in the bracket will have a chance to win a 2010 ROUSH Mustang for finishing first, a 42-inch HDTV for second place and two tickets to any NASCAR race in 2011 for finishing third. Fans will also have a chance to win the ultimate prize - a check for $1 million to the person who picks a perfect bracket. Fans can enter their brackets now by visiting www.DIRECTV.com/NASCAR.

Here is the schedule for DIRECTV's NASCAR® Head-2-Head Knockout competition in 2010:

• Round One on April 18 (Samsung Mobile 500 at Texas Motor Speedway)
• Round Two on April 25 (Aaron's 499 at Talladega Superspeedway)
• Round Three on May 1 (Crown Royal Presents the Heath Calhoun 400), Richmond International Raceway)
• "The Fastest Four" on May 8 (Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway)

NASCAR HOTPASS®, DIRECTV's exclusive broadcast that allows you to experience the race from the driver's vantage point, will transform into the ultimate way to track your brackets during the four-week competition and will be the best way to follow along.

* $1 million awarded either in the form of: (a) a 40-year annuity payable at $25,000 per year; or (b) a lump sum payment equal to the present value of such an annuity.

About DIRECTVM

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