Museum showcasing NASCAR's Winston Cup days to shut down amidst legal troubles

Before being rebranded as the NASCAR Cup Series, the highest echelon of stock car racing was known to older fans of the sport as the Winston Cup. Sponsored by the popular American cigarette brand owned by the RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company, the name of the series resounded with fans across the country between 1971 to 2003.

In a bid to keep the sport's heritage alive from what is remembered as the golden age of stock car racing, the Winston Cup Museum was founded in North Carolina. Opened in 2005 by founder Will Spencer, the privately-funded museum has been scrutinized over licensing relating to the Winston brand name.

After the cigarette brand was acquired by ITG Brand LLC, a lawsuit has been filed against the institution that has been protecting NASCAR heritage for over 18 years. The deal completed in 2015 has seen three lawsuits come Will Spencer's way, two of which were decided in his favor.

ITG claims there is no written agreement between the owner and RJ Reynolds Tobacco allowing the owner to keep physical representations of NASCAR's Winston Cup days at the museum. An official statement on the matter from Spencer read:

"I am incredibly proud to have had the honor of preserving this history for the past 18 years that we have been open to the public. I believe I have helped keep the Winston Cup era alive for many racing fans. So it is with great personal sadness that the time has come for me to close the museum's doors to the public for now."

The Winston Cup Museum remains closed to the public until further notice.

What was the NASCAR Winston Cup renamed after 2003?

After tobacco giant RJ Reynolds notified NASCAR they would stop sponsoring the highest echelon of the sport, telecommunications Nextel stepped up. Rebranded as the Nextel Cup Series for the following two years, a merger between Nextel and Sprint resulted in another renaming for NASCAR.

Now referred to as the Sprint Cup Series, the title sponsorship continued on until 2016, with popular energy drinks manufacturer Monster Energy jumping on the bandwagon for 2017.

The alliance lasted until the 2020 season. Junior nationwide series still carry forward their title sponsorship models, with the Craftsman Truck Series and Xfinity Series taking the names of their sponsoring companies.

The Cup Series drivers will be in action at the Atlanta Motor Speedway next weekend for the Quaker State 400.