When they ask the gentlemen to start their engines next February at the Daytona 500, not one of the NASCAR drivers will be thinking about winning the Winston Cup.

That's because there will be no Winston Cup.

R.J. Reynolds, the company that makes Winston cigarettes and has sponsored NASCAR's premier racing league for 32 years, will be replaced by Nextel in a deal reported to be worth $75 million per year for the length of the 10-year contract.

The change is not that surprising. Although R.J. Reynolds can, to some extent, be credited for the explosion in popularity that stock car racing has enjoyed in recent years, Big Tobacco has fallen on rocky economic times, with no certain future in sight. Plus, the industry has its hands tied by several lawsuit settlements, which restrict what kinds of events it can sponsor.

The change also makes sense for NASCAR. As it gets bigger and bigger, it also is touting itself as more family-oriented, something the image of tobacco use clashes with.

But although the changes were inevitable, the thought of Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the like racing for the "Nextel Cup" is just horrible. It brings a new level of corporate greed and commercialism to a sport that was already wallowing in it. At least "Winston Cup," sounded like a person's name. There are people out there who never realized it was named after cigarettes.

So here's a suggestion: Let Winston bow out. Let Nextel take over sponsorship of the championship points race. But the trophy should get a different name. One not connected with a sponsor. One that brings the fans -- not the corporate fat cats -- back into the equation and honors the history of the sport.

Drivers should race for the "Earnhardt Cup" in honor of the late Dale Earnhardt. Then, once Richard Petty passes, the trophy should be renamed the "Petty-Earnhardt Cup," as it should remain for eternity.

Don't worry, Nextel, you'll get your money's worth. The drivers can race for the Nextel Championship all season long. After winning "The Nextel" exhibition, a driver can stand in Nextel Lane and make a celebratory phone call.

But when the best of the best hoists the trophy at the end of the season one day, it should bear those two names, even if it's "The Petty-Earnhardt Cup presented by Nextel."

Petty and Earnhardt share the record for most NASCAR championships, with seven each. They were pioneers of the sport and have built incomparable reputations with both drivers and fans. The league's president, Mike Helton, utilizing NASCAR's unprecedented level of control over the sport, should do the right thing and etch those names even deeper into history.

"The King," Petty, competed from 1958-1992 and still holds records for most Winston Cup victories (200), poles (127), victories in a season (27 in 1967), consecutive victories (10 in 1967), and starts (1,177). He won the Daytona 500 a record seven times.

More importantly, Petty was an ambassador for the sport. People watched every week for his distinctive STP car painted in "Petty Blue" and hoped for a glimpse of the famous grin plastered across his face. He still goes to every race, this time as owner of Petty Enterprises, to watch his son Kyle race.

Earnhardt was even more wildly popular. Hidden behind his bushy mustache and old-school goggles was a familiar soft lopsided grin. It was the only thing soft about him, however. "The Intimidator" was just that on the track, and fans loved to see him do whatever it took to win.

Earnhardt's popularity stemmed from his relentless enthusiasm for not just driving, but winning. In addition to his seven Winston Cup championships, he finished second three times. He won the Daytona 500 in 1998, and is the all-time leader in race victories at that premier track. His career victory total (76) is the sixth-best of all time.

Naming trophies after people isn't a completely crazy idea. Just ask the NHL, whose "Stanley Cup" was donated in 1893 by Canada's Lord Stanley of Preston, a patron of the game. That's not all. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers might be the Super Bowl Champions, but they still kiss the Lombardi Trophy. And the Larry O'Brien trophy gets soaked with champagne in an NBA locker room after the finals.

In each case, naming the trophy after someone is an honor that literally will be handed down for generations. It's reserved for the ones who brought something unique to the sport, something that likely will never be matched.

Nothing could be truer of Petty and Earnhardt.