Shaquille O’Neal put his Dodge Hellcat on the line challenging comedian to a race
- Shaq got a Hellcat only because Desi Banks had one
- He wanted to race him in his Hellcat for fun
- The loser would have to give up their ride
Published on Nov 04, 2024 at 2:36 PM (UTC+4)
by Siddharth Dudeja
Last updated on Nov 04, 2024 at 2:36 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
Everyone knows by now that NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal — more commonly known as Shaq — is a car guy, but did you know he bought a Dodge Hellcat just to race someone else’s Hellcat for pink slips?
Well, as chaotic as it may sound, it actually happened.
Shaq is not someone you might have heard about when it comes to racing, but this was more of a personal task.
He challenged popular comedian Desi Banks, who happens to be his neighbor, for an all-out Hellcat race.
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Shaquille O’Neal was ready to give up his Hellcat in a race
In a recent podcast, Shaquille O’Neal and Desi Banks were casually in a conversation when Shaq said he would race the comedian.
He was serious, too.
It wasn’t going to be just any race, but instead a ‘title for title.’
That translates to the loser giving up their beloved Charger after the race ends.
If anything, the NBA star’s ride was slightly buffed up because it produced a massive 1,400 horsepower.
Meanwhile, the one in Desi Banks’ garage can only manage to send out relatively lower (but impressive) 1,200 horsepower.
If you thought that was it, this gets more interesting.
He also mentioned that he only bought this custom Hellcat just because Banks had one.
Shaq and his custom-built Hellcat
The NBA legend has a reputation for collecting cars — he owns three Rolls-Royces that he never even drives.
His race pick, however, is a modified Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye Widebody, which gets its power from a 6.2-liter supercharged V8.
It’s certainly beefed up because the horsepower is a humongous jump from the stock numbers typically seen in a Charger Hellcat Jailbreak edition.
Before discussing the terms of the race, Shaquille O’Neal said: “If I ever see your Hellcat on 85, 75, 285, 675, 155— title for title.”
Although Desi Banks agreed to the terms set by the NBA star, the race hasn’t happened yet.
The duo agreed a few months ago when the podcast episode was released, but there’s been no sign of any Hellcat races yet.
However, Shaq has been quite active in the past few months, and he has been making amends to his garage.
He got a handful of Cybertrucks delivered only recently, which he seems to be enjoying.
Shaquille O’Neal has also been traveling in his $26 million private jet, the maintenance bill of which is absurd, by the way.
