International Speedway and Speedway Motorsports Partner to Purchase Action Performance

-- ISC and SMI have partnered in a joint venture, which will conduct business under the name Motorsports Authentics, to create a leader in the production, marketing and sales of motorsports licensed merchandise, including apparel and souvenirs. Motorsports Authentics will operate as an independent company with ISC and SMI as equal owners.

-- Motorsports Authentics has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase Action for $13 per common share, or approximately $245 million, in cash. The acquisition is structured as a merger of a wholly-owned subsidiary of Motorsports Authentics into Action, and the surviving entity will be operated by Motorsports Authentics. The acquisition is expected to close by calendar year-end, and is subject to several conditions including Action shareholder approval, regulatory approvals required under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, consents and certificates from certain counterparties to Action's material contracts as well as the lack of any material adverse event to Action's business.

Strategic Rationale

Action is the leader in design, promotion, marketing anddistribution of licensed merchandise. Its products include a broadrange of motorsports-related die-cast replica collectibles, apparel,gifts and other memorabilia. Approximately 70 percent of the company's2004 product sales related to NASCAR due to its license agreementswith many of the sport's top teams and drivers. In addition, Actiondesigns and sells products relating to other motorsports including theNational Hot Rod Association, Formula One and Indy Racing League.Action also has licenses to manufacture apparel and memorabilia forthe National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, andmultiple other branded organizations.

Action markets collectible die-cast products under the namesAction Racing Collectibles, RCCA, Winner's Circle, AP, MuscleMachines, Brookfield Collector's Guild and Minichamps. Action's brandsfor licensed apparel, gifts and other memorabilia include ChaseAuthentics, Trevco and Winner's Circle. Action currently markets itsproducts primarily through a combination of mass retail, domesticwholesale, trackside, international and collector's club.

Lesa France Kennedy, President of ISC, stated, "As part ofMotorsports Authentics, we believe Action has significant long-termpotential for generating positive cash flow and earnings. We plan toleverage the extensive relationships and marketing expertise of bothISC and SMI to make this a successful venture. From a trackside salesperspective, ISC and SMI each promote a significant number of eventsin NASCAR's three national touring series including the NASCAR NEXTELCup schedule. As such, we believe we can capitalize on financial andoperating synergies by approaching merchandise operations as acombined entity through Motorsports Authentics. Further, through thecontinued execution of its initiatives to improve financialperformance, we believe that Action will be better positioned tocapitalize on the continued growth in the popularity of NASCAR andother forms of motorsports."

"We believe it is strategically important for NASCAR and othermotorsports to have strong, well-run companies designing, marketingand distributing racing merchandise," commented Mr. Bruton Smith,Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Speedway Motorsports."Licensed product is a significant segment of the industry that hashistorically not been optimized. Motorsports Authentics will integratethe intellectual property rights of a significant number of NASCAR'spremier teams, drivers and tracks into a cohesive long-termmerchandising strategy. It is our goal to ensure that our products areproperly marketed through key distribution channels, which will helppromote NASCAR and other motorsports while creating natural businesssynergies, particularly during event weekends."

Operating Strategy

A four-member management committee will oversee the operations ofMotorsports Authentics. The committee will be comprised of Ms. FranceKennedy; John Saunders, Executive Vice President and Chief OperatingOfficer for ISC; Marcus Smith, Executive Vice President of NationalSales and Marketing for SMI; and Mark Gambill, an SMI Board ofDirector member since 1995. In addition, an integration team comprisedof top ISC, SMI and Action management will complement Action'sexisting team of outstanding employees at all levels of theorganization.

Fred Wagenhals, President and CEO of Action; David Riddiford,Action's Chief Financial Officer; and Melodee Volosin, Action's ChiefOperating Officer, are expected to remain in key roles in the newcompany as they have significant knowledge and are viewed as importantresources to the integration and restructuring of the business. HerbBaum, recently appointed as Executive Chairman of Action Performance,will not remain with the company after closing.

Motorsports Authentics will continue to execute Action's plans toreturn its business to profitability. Action has recently announcedplans to improve its financial performance, including optimizing theproduction, marketing and distribution of its die-cast and otherproducts, divesting or discontinuing non-core businesses, controllingexpenditures and expanding its traditional retail channels through theconsolidation of certain functions.

Action recently announced a restructuring of its wholesale NASCARdie-cast distribution to a direct-to-retail model. Under thisstrategy, the company's existing Charlotte, North Carolina operations,which currently manages wholesale apparel operations, would alsohandle fulfillment for wholesale NASCAR die-cast and apparel effectiveOctober 3, 2005. A call center is being added at that facility tohandle order processing and customer service. These initiatives areexpected to benefit the business through a lower cost structure,improved speed to market, and earlier awareness of consumer trends,preferences and buying habits.

"This transaction represents the best strategic option for ourbusiness," said Mr. Wagenhals. "Under the leadership and guidance ofMotorsports Authentics' management committee and a strong integrationteam, the business should be able to more rapidly execute its turnaround strategy, return to profitability and capitalize on futuregrowth opportunities. I look forward to focusing my efforts on furtherstrengthening the relationships with our licensors and distributors,and contributing to the future success of Motorsports Authentics."

Financial Impact

Upon closing, both ISC and SMI expect to record equityinvestments, with each representing 50 percent of the total netconsideration paid for the outstanding shares of Action. The entitywill be self-sustaining and it is expected both ISC and SMI willrecord results of Motorsports Authentics as an equity investment.

From an earnings perspective, as the transaction is not expectedto close until late in the calendar year, it is expected to minimallyimpact the financial results of Motorsports Authentics for 2005.

Wachovia Securities acted as financial advisors for ISC and SMI,and SunTrust Robinson Humphrey acted as financial advisors to Actionin connection with the transaction.

Conference Call

The executive management teams of ISC, SMI and Action will host aconference call today with investors at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Toparticipate, dial toll free 888-693-3477 five to ten minutes prior tothe scheduled start time and request to be connected to theMotorsports Authentics call. A live Webcast of the call can beaccessed at www.iscmotorsports.com, www.speedwaymotorsports.com, andwww.action-performance.com.

A replay will be available one hour after the end of the callthrough midnight Friday, September 9, 2005. To access, dial toll free877-519-4471 and enter the code 6434798, or visit the Web sitesreferenced above.

About ISC

International Speedway Corporation is a leading promoter ofmotorsports activities in the United States, currently promoting morethan 100 racing events annually as well as numerous othermotorsports-related activities. The Company owns and/or operates 11 ofthe nation's major motorsports entertainment facilities, includingDaytona International Speedway in Florida (home of the Daytona 500);Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama; Michigan International Speedwaylocated outside Detroit; Richmond International Raceway in Virginia;California Speedway near Los Angeles; Kansas Speedway in Kansas City,Kansas; Phoenix International Raceway in Arizona; Homestead-MiamiSpeedway in Florida; Martinsville Speedway in Virginia; DarlingtonRaceway in South Carolina; Watkins Glen International in New York.Other motorsports entertainment facility ownership includes anindirect 37.5% interest in Raceway Associates, LLC, which owns andoperates Chicagoland Speedway and Route 66 Raceway near Chicago,Illinois.

The Company also owns and operates MRN Radio, a leadingindependent sports radio network; DAYTONA USA, the "UltimateMotorsports Attraction" and official attraction of NASCAR; andsubsidiaries which provide catering services, food and beverageconcessions, and produce and market motorsports-related merchandiseunder the trade name "Americrown."

About SMI

Speedway Motorsports is a leading marketer and promoter ofmotorsports entertainment in the United States. The Company owns andoperates the following premier facilities: Atlanta Motor Speedway,Bristol Motor Speedway, Infineon Raceway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway,Lowe's Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway. The Company providessouvenir merchandising services through its SMI Propertiessubsidiaries, and manufactures and distributes smaller-scale, modifiedracing cars through its 600 Racing subsidiary. The Company also ownsPerformance Racing Network, which broadcasts syndicated motorsportsprogramming to over 710 radio stations nationwide. For moreinformation, visit the Company's Website atwww.speedwaymotorsports.com.

About Action

Action Performance Companies Inc. (NYSE:ATN - News) is the leaderin the design, promotion, marketing and distribution of licensedmotorsports merchandise. The Company's products include a broad rangeof motorsports-related die-cast replica collectibles, apparel,souvenirs and other sports-inspired memorabilia. Action Performancemarkets and distributes products through a variety of channelsincluding the Action Racing Collectables network of wholesaledistributors, the Racing Collectables Club of America, QVC,goracing.com, trackside at racing events, direct corporate promotions,mass retail and department stores, specialty dealers and select onlineretailers. For more information about Action Performance and its manysubsidiaries, please visit the Company's corporate Web site atwww.action-performance.com.

Additional Information and Where to Find It

Action Performance has agreed to file a proxy statement inconnection with the proposed Merger and related transactions. ActionPerformance will mail the proxy statement to its stockholders. Theproxy statement will contain important information about thetransaction, and Action Performance's stockholders are urged to readthe proxy statement and other relevant materials when they becomeavailable.

Investors and security holders may obtain free copies of thesedocuments (when they are available) and other documents filed with theSecurities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") at the SEC's web siteat www.sec.gov. In addition, investors and security holders may obtainfree copies of the documents filed with the SEC by Action Performanceby going to Action Performance's investor relations page on itscorporate website at www. action-performance.com or by contactingDavid Riddiford at Action Performance at 1480 South Hohokam Drive,Tempe, Arizona, 85281 or by phone at (602) 337-3700.

Information regarding the identity of the persons who may, underSEC rules, be deemed to be participants in the solicitation ofstockholders of Action Performance in connection with the transaction,and their interests in the solicitation, will be set forth in a proxystatement that will be filed by Action Performance with the SEC.

This press release contains forward-looking statements regardingthe parties to the transactions described in this release, includingstatements regarding Action Performance's anticipated financialresults, the results of its restructuring and the proposed transactionwith ISC, SMI and their related entities. Forward-looking statementsare not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks anduncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties detailed fromtime to time in the parties' filings with the Securities and ExchangeCommission. In addition, the statements regarding the consummation ofthe transaction discussed in this release are subject to risks thatthe conditions to the transaction will not be satisfied, including therisk that regulatory approvals will not be obtained, and that thedefinitive agreement will be terminated prior to closing. In the caseof Action Performance, such risks include potential adverse impacts onits results of operations, financial condition and cash flows that mayarise from the announcement of the proposed transaction, as well asthe potential adverse impact on its ability to attract and retaincustomers, management and employees. The parties have incurred andwill continue to incur significant advisory fees and legal and otherexpenses relating to the transaction. Although the parties believethat the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements arereasonable, they cannot give any assurances that these expectationswill prove to be correct. The parties disclaim any duty to publiclyupdate or revise any forward-looking statements regarding the mattersdiscussed in this release, whether as a result of new information,future events or otherwise. Action Performance further disclaims anyresponsibility for forward-looking statements or other statements madein this release concerning the other parties to the proposedtransaction, including ISC, SMI and their related entities, and/or toany descriptions contained in this release concerning their proposedjoint venture.