GOLDEN VALLEY, MN -- In a move that will vault extreme driving into the American mainstream, Rally America is taking performance rally to the X Games circuit this summer in Los Angeles.

“The X Games is our opportunity to present the sport to millions of viewers,” says Rally America spokesman J.B. Niday. “We get to show a new audience that rally isn’t just a video game. It’s really out there, and it’s really cool.”

Niday said Rally America believes the X Games venture will increase the presence of this thrilling action sport in North America, bringing much-deserved attention to rally competition from top talent and sponsors.

“Rally is just as extreme a sport as anything else in X Games,” says Niday. “This is the first four-wheel motorsport in the X Games and it’s a great fit.”

Even in the early stages, it’s a strategy that appears to be paying off. The announcement has been greeted with intense interest from across the continent and as far away as Europe. Several manufacturers and even a few World Rally Championship drivers have already inquired about getting involved in the X Games effort.

Niday said he expects that enthusiasm to carry over into the Rally America series.

The inaugural X Games rally will go to air live on ESPN and ABC Sports. ESPN first developed its X Games property in 1995 and today, the X Games and Winter X Games are the biggest action sports events in the world.

A select group of top drivers will battle it out for X Games gold in front of the action-mad audience. The event will include a day of top-speed driving over six challenging rally stages and a second-day stadium course that organizers hint could include a 40-foot jump.

“Rally Car Racing is incredibly dynamic and exciting,” says Ron Semiao, senior vice president of ESPN Original Entertainment. “We feel it matches our existing X Games audience while having the ability to attract new viewers, as well.”

The Rally America Championship is the premier rally series in the United States, with races taking place from coast-to-coast over a 12-month season. The first X Games rally will take place August 3-6, 2006, in Los Angeles.