Castro Draws Three 'Kings' for Unique Whips Specials on SPEED(TM).

NBA Great & Olympic Gold Medalist Lebron James, Music Icons 50 Cent and Diddy Headline Special Fall Editions of Unique Whips 

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Back and bigger than ever, Long Island custom car king Will Castro and his crew from Unique Autosports return to SPEED for three fall specials featuring some of the biggest names in sports and entertainment royalty.

The first special, scheduled to premiere Nov. 4 at 10 p.m. ET, will feature NBA star LeBron "King" James and his Ferrari F430, along with a special Toyota Sequoia Platinum NBA All-Star Game project with Miami Heat center Alonzo Mourning.

"There are a lot of car shops out there, but there's only one that makes your ride unique," James said. "Will Castro and his team are the best, so all of my cars are customized exclusively by Unique Autosports."

For the second special, Castro joins cutting edge rapper and hip hop king 50 Cent inside his Connecticut mansion, as the pair work on a special project with Pontiac. Powered by a 500-horsepower LSX 427 engine, 50's one-of-a-kind Pontiac G8 performance sedan gets some "Unique" treatment at Castro's New York headquarters.

"My people already know -- and I ain't even gotta say nothing -- if you send my cars to somebody other than Will, don't even bother coming back to work," 50 Cent explained. "And it's not really about Will, it's about his work ethic. I know how hard it is to become the best (in the world) at what you do and I respect that. And so the people that work for me have to respect that."

"With these specials, we're getting out of the shop and spending more time with our clients," said Castro, who has done projects for everyone from R&B legend Patti LaBelle to fashion icon Marc Ecko to boxing champ Bernard Hopkins. "We put a lot of time and effort into building relationships with our clients ... we go way beyond just working on the cars. From auto to marine to in-home, the Unique brand experience customizes the look, sound, feel and texture of any project."

For the third special, Castro and his team got to do a little retro work on a pair of "fraternal twin" Jeep Wranglers for Sean "Diddy" Combs, who Castro recognizes as the "king of kings" in the entertainment world.

"Diddy wanted us to make Wranglers like the ones Wesley Snipes drove in the movie New Jack City," Castro said. "Since Diddy has twins of his own, he wanted the Jeeps to be the same, but each with its own look and personality ... each one Unique. We delivered one with a merlot theme and the other was platinum."

While filming new episodes of Unique Whips under his new Facio Productions banner, Castro also is taking on his biggest project to date, opening Unique Autosports Miami to be able to better service the South Beach elite in an area that openly embraces the playground-of-the-stars personality.

"Like the master customizer he is, Will continues to reinvent not just high-end vehicles, but himself, as well," said SPEED VP of Programming Robert Ecker. "I've known Will a long time, and it's fascinating to watch him branch out in different directions in different ways. Never one to settle for the status quo, with Unique South in Miami and another shop opening in Dubai, Will is about to take the industry by storm; it's the logical next step that makes all the sense in the world as he undertakes the global expansion of the Unique brand."

In addition, exclusive Unique Whips short-form content will be made available all season through SPEEDtv.com, VOD cable, iTunes video podcasts, mobile phones, cable broadband sites and viral distribution.

On the mobile front, long-form episodes will be available on Sprint wireless handsets via Sprint TV. SPEED clips and original short-form content will be made available to Sprint, AT&T, MobiTV and others.

Unique Whips full-length episodes, advanced screenings and free clips also will be available for electronic download via iTunes, Amazon and other electronic download distributors.

Unique Autosports is a highly acclaimed New York-based car customizing shop which services celebrity clientele and car enthusiasts around the world. Owned by Will Castro, Unique Autosports has been recognized as a leader in car customization for more than ten years. The Unique Autosports brand includes Unique Whips, the signature cable television show entering its fourth season on SPEED; a brand new 20,000-square-foot car customization shop opening in South Beach, Miami that will service high end vehicles; Unique Yachts, Unique Autosports' one-of-a-kind customization program for high-end marine vessels; and Unique Homes. For more information on Unique Autosports, please visit www.uniqueautosport.com.

SPEED is the nation's first and foremost cable television network dedicated to motor sports and the passion for everything automotive. From racing to restoration, motorcycles to movies, SPEED delivers quality programming from the track to the garage. Now available in more than 78 million homes in North America, SPEED is among the fastest-growing sports cable networks in the country and, the home to NASCAR on SPEED and an industry leader in interactive TV, video on demand, mobile initiatives and broadband services. For more information, please visit SPEEDtv.com, the online motor sports authority.

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To arrange an interview with Will Castro, please contact:

Hanif Sumner, 5W PR, at 212-584-4310 or [e-mail]