When Dale Earnhardt Jr. climbs into his new car next year after jumping Nascar teams, he'll leave Budweiser in the dust.

Earnhardt, voted Nascar's most popular driver, won't be bringing the Anheuser-Busch Cos.'s Budweiser marks that he has carried for the past nine seasons with him when he joins Hendrick Motorsports. Because of an undisclosed conflict with another team sponsor, Earnhardt will replace the logo of the beer, the most prominent Nascar team sponsor, on his racing suit, helmet and vehicle.

The 32-year-old is splitting with Dale Earnhardt Inc., the racing company founded by his late father, after failing to gain control of it from his stepmother.

Earnhardt's personal popularity and the TV cameras that focus on his zooming, bright-red Budweiser billboard have been lucrative for the St. Louis-based brewer. It has reaped the equivalent of $129.7 million worth of television ad time through 22 nationally broadcast races this year, according to Joyce Julius & Associates, which evaluates corporate sponsorships.

The exposure makes Budweiser the top sponsor in stock-car racing. It's almost double the $71.9 million garnered by Jeff Gordon, who is tied for the top spot in the Nextel Cup point ratings, for sponsor DuPont Co., according to Joyce Julius. Gordon is third behind the $90.7 million estimated for his teammate, Jimmie Johnson, the defending Nextel Cup champion.

13th in Standings

While Earnhardt's Chevrolet ranks first in the value of ad exposure, he is 13th in the Nextel standings.

Anheuser-Busch won't disclose what it spends on Earnhardt. It would cost from $20 million to $25 million annually to be the primary sponsor of a ``mega-star'' like Earnhardt, Gordon or Tony Stewart, said Brian Evans, director of client relations for Verve Sponsorship Group, an Atlanta consultant that specializes in Nascar.

Ann Arbor, Michigan-based Joyce Julius counts sponsor mentions and the TV airtime of logos, then applies national television advertising rates to the numbers.

Earnhardt hasn't said who his new sponsor will be when he begins racing for Concord, North Carolina-based Hendrick next season. He and his new team will hold a press conference Sept. 19 in Dallas to announce the new sponsor.

PepsiCo Inc. is one of the top sponsors of Hendrick's other cars, fueling speculation that he'll be backed by one of its soft-drink brands. Pepsi spokeswoman Nicole Bradley declined to comment on Earnhardt...