An official announcement of the Furniture Row Racing’s multi-year deal with Toyota is planned for Sunday morning at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, sources said.
Furniture Row Racing will remain a single-car team next season, fielding the No. 78 Toyota for driver Martin Truex Jr., who is one of 16 drivers competing in the championship Chase this season.
A source close to the negotiations provided a statement stating that Chevrolet officials confirmed FRR would not continue to field Chevrolets next season.
“We thank Furniture Row Racing for all of the team’s hard work and accomplishments over the past decade, and we wish Barney Visser and his organization continued success with their future endeavors,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. Vice President, Performance Vehicles and Motorsports.
As part of its move to Toyota, Furniture Row Racing will join in a technical alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing from which it will receive chassis and engines, sources said. FRR is currently in a technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing, a pairing which will discontinue at season’s end.
With Michael Waltrip Racing closing it’s doors at the end of the season, Gibbs’ four Cup teams were set to be Toyota’s only factory-backed teams in the Cup series next season.
FRR officials have made no secret this season of their desire to take on a larger role with a manufacturer and Toyota officials have expressed interest in working with the organization.
“There just doesn’t seem to be any money out of General Motors and probably never will be for us, so something’s got to give,” Visser said in an interview shortly after Truex’s win at Pocono in June.
As recently as last week, Toyota Racing Development president David Wilson reiterated his desire to see FRR join the manufacturer’s camp.
FRR, founded in 2005, is enjoying its most successful season in NASCAR competition. Truex has one win, seven top-five and 17 top-10 finishes in 27 races thus far. He is 11th in the series standings entering Sunday’s second race in the Chase.
So look for the press conference from Louden,NH, on Sunday outlining the manufacturer change in FRR’s future!
TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!
