NEW YORK (September 3, 2017) -- Cowabunga dude! Nickelodeon and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are again taking over the Chicagoland Speedway NASCAR race weekend. Nickelodeon is the entitlement sponsor of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race on Sunday, Sept. 17, dubbed the Tales of the Turtles 400. The track will feature a weekend of action, activities and fun for the entire family with the iconic Heroes in a Half Shell.

Greg Cipes, the actor who voices Michelangelo in Nickelodeon's television hit Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, will participate in the weekend festivities, greet fans and serve as a pre-race dignitary.

The 1.5-mile track will serve as the site of an epic weekend showcase for the new Tales of the Turtles TV season, which is titled Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles because it consists of seven separate serialized stories. The featured drivers include:

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series

• Matt DiBenedetto will carry the "Samurai" paint scheme on his Go Fas Racing Ford

• Jeffrey Earnhardt practices his moves for the "BeeBop" and "Rocksteady" on his Circle Sport Chevy

NASCAR XFINITY Series

• Matt Tift will have "Lone Rat" and "Cub" on his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

• John Hunter Nemechek will have "Undead Shredder" on his NEMCO Motorsports Chevy

• Jennifer Jo Cobb will carry "Rebel Road" on her JJC Chevy

During the Tales of the Turtles 400 race weekend, enjoy fun family activities in the Nickelodeon Kids Zone, located in Champion's Park. The area will feature appearances from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles costumed characters, a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles photo station and more.

The creative Tales of the Turtle 400 trophy will be on display throughout the weekend at the track. The winning designers were chosen through the Good Day for Play art competition held this past summer. The attendees and celebrity judges ended in a tie, selecting Chicago street artists Tubsz and Max Sansing to co-design the trophy. Artist E. LEE will have his work featured on a trackside billboard.

Special fan merchandise is available for the Tales of the Turtles 400 event and features fun, bright colors and the race logo. A range of T-shirts and hats will be available for fans of all ages, including youth, toddler and adult sizes, as well as lanyards, magnets, can coolers and even a bib for the youngest "Dudes" and Turtle fans. The fan apparel and novelty items showcasing "Turtle Power" are available at the Fan Zone merchandise area and on the NASCAR.com Superstore.

This Sept. 14-17 marks the second partnership for Chicagoland Speedway and Nickelodeon, who last year partnered to bring fans the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400 race which featured art created by renowned artist Hebru Brantley. This is the seventh consecutive year Chicagoland Speedway will kick off the Playoffs for the MONSTER Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

About Nickelodeon

Nickelodeon, now in its 38th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in more than 90 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 20 consecutive years. For more information or artwork, visit http://www.nickpress.com. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB).

-- Nickelodeon --