Rather than finishing with a bang, AT&T decided to go quietly without any special activation at the end of the season.

AT&T executives watched their final Sprint Cup race as sponsor of Jeff Burton's #31 car from a suite over the garages at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Tim McGhee, AT&T's director of national sponsorships, said the scene was sad, “knowing that we won't be back in the Cup series in the foreseeable future.”

With Cingular's rebranding to AT&T, the Richard Childress Racing sponsor was bumped out of the Sprint Cup Series by NASCAR and its series title sponsor, Sprint.

McGhee said it has not been decided whether AT&T will continue its substantial advertising on NASCAR broadcasts.

by Michael Smith/Sporting News

Michael Smith is a reporter with SportsBusiness Journal.