This Bud's for ... ? Dale Jr., longtime sponsor to split (cont'd)

"Sure, I would have loved to have continued to work with Bud. But under the circumstances, that's not a possibility. We'll have to change our frame of mind and see what the opportunities are for our primary sponsor next year. Those should be in line with what I like and what I enjoy. I'm excited to put that together and see what it looks like," Earnhardt said.

"I would hope there would be no pressure on me to do something or pair with someone I didn't have a good feeling about, or didn't have anything in common with. That would be a foolish mistake on our part. It will be a product that I'll fit right in with and I'll have a lot of fun with, and I'll enjoy being in partnership with."

While Earnhardt Jr. will have to adapt to a professional life without Budweiser -- he'll still enjoy the product, saying, "You don't have to pay me to drink a beer" -- Bud will have to find a new NASCAR pitchman. That may be Kasey Kahne, whose Evernham Motorsports team is among those targeted by the company. Bud could wind up trading in one fan favorite in a red car for another.

"Kasey would really have a lot of fun with that," Earnhardt said. "I think they would enjoy Kasey, might bring him out of his shell a little bit. But there are a lot of great guys here that would definitely fit that brand and work well with Budweiser. Where Bud decides to go, it would be cool if they did stay at [Dale Earnhardt Inc]. But wherever they decide to go will be the right choice for them. They always make the right decision."

Max Siegel, president of DEI, hopes that decision is to stay with his company.

"I think what they're going to do is take a look at what the best situation is for them to have a presence in the sport," he said. "It's a long partnership they've had with Dale Jr. You kind of have to take a step back and figure out what your strategy's going to be. They've been a great partner of ours, and we're going to do the same thing. We're going to sit down with them and have discussions as to whether there is any scenario that makes sense for them and us."

DEI has Bass Pro Shops and Menard's returning for 2008 on the respective cars of Martin Truex Jr. and Paul Menard. Budweiser's decision could hinge on DEI's choice of a driver to replace Earnhardt, something Siegel hopes to announce by the end of this month. And if Budweiser goes elsewhere, Siegel believes he'll have little difficulty landing a suitable replacement.

"This is a great organization," he said. "There are quite a few commercial partners that would like be associated with Dale Earnhardt Inc. The company has been around 25 years and has 400 employees, so we have options."

And what happens to all that Earnhardt Budweiser apparel? "eBay," Siegel joked.