EA TEAMS UP WITH TOP DRIVERS TO FORM ‘TEAM NEED FOR SPEED’ INTERNATIONAL RACING COLLECTIVE

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Drifters Mad Mike Whiddett, Matt Powers and
GT Racer Patrick Soderlund to be Sponsored by Need for Speed

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – April 6, 2010 – From the hit videogame to the street, Need for Speed™ is the nerve center of gaming car culture. Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ: ERTS) today announced an entertainment program that brings together the top street, drift, GT racing, time attack cars and drivers. Dubbed ‘Team Need for Speed’, these individuals embody the spirit of the Need for Speed franchise – the adrenaline and rebelliousness of driving the world’s coolest cars. Together, this collective of racing influencers will carry the Need for Speed brand into a variety of events, films, competitions and more.

Team Need for Speed consists of an all-star roster of drivers renowned for their skill on the track and passion for the automotive lifestyle including Vaughn Gittin Jr. (Drift/USA), Matt Powers (Drift/USA), Edward Sandström (GT Racing/Europe), Patrick Söderlund (GT Racing/Europe) and Mad Mike Whiddett (Drift/USA, New Zealand, Japan). Additional drivers will be announced in the future. The season kicks off this week as three of the Team Need for Speed drivers hit the track. On April 9, Mad Mike Whiddett and Matt Powers compete in the ‘Streets of Long Beach’ Formula D event and on April 10, Patrick Soderlund and teammate Edward Sandström will compete in the VLN Series’ Stunden-Rennen race at the Nurburgring Nordschleife in Germany.

“Driving for Team Need for Speed is a great honor,” said Mad Mike Whiddett, Team Need for Speed driver and champion drifter. “I love the pure creativity and insane competition of drifting and partnering with Need for Speed is perfectly aligned with my personal and professional passions.”

The Team Need for Speed program also features a 12-part film series about the Team Need for Speed drivers and their cars directed by renowned automotive filmmaker, Will Roegge. Need for Speed is also expanding its Formula D sponsorship with the Need for Speed Lounge where attendees can meet the drivers, Mad Mike Whiddett and Matt Powers, and play the latest Need for Speed games.

Keith Munro, VP of Marketing for EA said, “Team Need for Speed launches an aggressive initiative designed to bring the core brand values of Need for Speed into the real world. By partnering with these tastemakers and by creating these specific programs, Need for Speed goes beyond the game into the real world of automotive lifestyle culture.”

With over 100M units sold, Need for Speed is the best-selling racing game franchise in the world and is known for delivering unparalleled white-knuckle racing, creative customization and street style. Last fall EA published Need for Speed SHIFT, the highest rated Need for Speed game in years, featuring an intense first-person crash dynamic and a signature cockpit view that delivers a true driver’s experience. Need for Speed World is a massively multiplayer online action racing game that is currently in the beta process and will be available this summer on the PC.

For more information on Team Need for Speed visit needforspeed.com, become a fan at http://www.facebook.com/needforspeed or follow us on Twitter at NeedforSpeed. Press can download assets at http://info.ea.com.

Formula DRIFT Thailand Results

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The inaugural Formula Drift Thailand, presented by Goodyear, ended with a climactic battle as “Mad Mike” Whiddett, New Zealand’s champion drifter, and 2004 D1 Japan Grand Prix winner Ryuji Miki competed head to head in a final showdown last weekend.

Ultimately, Mad Mike was declared the winner after a heart-stopping three-round battle. Third place honors went to Malaysian drifter Tengku Djan, who was the 2009 Formula Drift Singapore champion last July.

“Mad Mike” Whiddett, drifting with Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric tires, overcame an equally gruelling knockout round with Tengku Djan in wet weather conditions as the rain poured before the Final Four began.

Thailand’s first and only world-class drifting ground, Wonderworld Park, Ramindra, was filled to capacity as drift fans flowed in to pack the racing ground during the two-day competition. The 7,000 strong venue was fully booked.

Intensity mounted on the second day when 32 qualifiers, including 23 Thai competitors, demonstrated their skills and techniques on the smoke-filled racing track, accompanied by the roar of powerful engines as the drifters revved up. The three American judges invited from Formula Drift lent an air of stringency to the proceedings as the organizers aimed to bring Formula Drift Thailand standards to a new, more professional level.

Thai drift king – Kiki Nana – was among the qualifying drifters and successfully sailed through to the final eight before being defeated and exiting from the competition. All Thai drifters taking part mentioned that this was the most impressive drift competition they had been involved in, and even though they were unable to bring the trophy home, the two days on the drifting ground with super drifters from across the region was an amazing experience. They also noted that they find international competing standards tough but very challenging.

The two drifters from New Zealand and Japan sweated it out in the final battle. Instead of two rounds of battle like the other competitions, the two drifters had to compete in three rounds since their skills were highly matched. Judges were put in the hot seat as they just could not agree on an unanimous winner. It was decided that the competition would be settled in a third round of battle.

Finally, it appeared that the third round had done the trick. Whiddett and Miki stood side by side on the stage. Tension rose to a peak as the third judge revealed his final score for Whiddett, and broke in a wave of emotion as the New Zealand drift hero was crowned the winner of Formula Drift Thailand with 2:1 score. The crowd went wild, cheering and clapping.

After the trophy presentation, the winners had to stay on stage for more than half an hour as drift fans kept coming onstage to congratulate them in person. The organizers also kept the crowd entertained with stunt shows and highly energizing percussion numbers.

Formula Drift now moves to Malaysia as Goodyear hosts the final competition in the ASEAN drift series, to be held in December 19-20 at the MAEPS (Malaysian Agro Exposition Park Serdang) grounds.

Results:

1st Place – Mike Whiddet
2nd Place – Ryuji Miki
3rd Place – Tengku Djan

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