NASCAR has recruited broadcast partner ESPN to help it secure a new backer for its Busch Series, after Anheuser-Busch confirmed that it would end its title sponsorship deal at the end of the 2007 season.

Although the brewing group did not announce its exit publicly, it leaves a significant gap in NASCAR's line-up which the organising body is hoping to fill to the tune of $40m a year. The second tier series grew out of NASCAR's Late Model Sportsman Division, which was renamed in deference to first sponsor Budweiser in 1982, before the Busch brand took over as title sponsor two years later, remaining in place to the current day.

Series officials believe that involving ESPN in its search will help to attract potential replacements, especially as the television company will carry increased coverage of the championship

"We will join forces to find the right series sponsor to support our efforts and elevate the series," NASCAR's director of business communication, Andrew Giangola, said, "The Busch Series will have more of a presence on ESPN, so we're going to be looking for a national brand that's going to promote the series. [It] is an extremely strong motorsports property, [so this is] a significant opportunity for a company to gain $100 million in brand exposure. It's a unique situation, because the company is literally branded to the sport."