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Oneida Entertainment Joins American Racing10 March 2006HOUSTON, Texas – (PRESS RELEASE) -- Nevada Gold & Casinos, Inc. (AMEX:UWN) announced that Oneida Entertainment, LLC (``Oneida'), has been admitted as a member in American Racing and Entertainment, LLC. Oneida has made a $5 million equity investment in American Racing, which owns the Tioga Downs Racetrack located just west of Binghamton in Nichols, New York. Oneida is a subsidiary of a fund managed by Plainfield Asset Management LLC (``Plainfield'). Based in Greenwich, Connecticut, Plainfield is an investment advisor registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and manages in excess of $1 billion of investment capital. Oneida will receive a 20% membership interest in American Racing and the membership interests of the other members will be reduced on a prorata basis as follows: --Nevada Gold 40% -- Southern Tier Acquisitions II, LLC 20% -- TrackPower, Inc. 20% Previously, Oneida, who had a competing plan of reorganization in the Mid-State Raceway, Inc. Chapter 11 bankruptcy, agreed to withdraw its objection to the reorganization plan submitted by the debtors and Vernon Downs Acquisition, LLC (``VDA'), which is a wholly owned subsidiary of American Racing. Mid-State Raceway, Inc. owns the Vernon Downs Racetrack located just east of Syracuse in Vernon, New York. On February 10, 2006, the Bankruptcy Court issued an order that allows for VDA's and the Debtors' plan to be confirmed, subject to VDA providing the court written proof that VDA has sufficient monies on deposit to fund all payments to creditors due on the effective date on or before March 6, 2006, and a confirmation order being entered. Sufficient funds to pay all payments due to creditors on the effective date of VDA's and the Debtors' Plan were placed on deposit on March 6 by American Racing; however, the judge has not yet entered a confirmation order. American Racing and another fund managed by Plainfield have also entered into a commitment letter whereby Plainfield has agreed to provide second lien debt financing in an aggregate amount of $15 million to American Racing for the development and upgrade of Vernon Downs Racetrack and the Tioga Downs Racetrack. The closing of the debt financing is conditioned upon the entry of a confirmation order in the Vernon bankruptcy approving VDA's and the Debtor's Plan, American Racing obtaining senior, first lien debt financing of up to $60 million, and satisfaction of usual and customary conditions for transactions of that type. H. Thomas Winn, Chairman and CEO of Nevada Gold, commented, ``On behalf of Nevada Gold, we welcome our new partners in American Racing and look forward to a successful opening of Tioga Downs, as well as the successful acquisition of Vernon Downs.' |