Good Guy Smith May Be Out at Furniture Row, Bad Guy Busch Could Be In

It appears Regan Smith will only climb into his No. 78 car eight more times

It appears that Regan Smith's tenure at Furniture Row Racing will come to an end following the 2012 season. News broke on Friday that Smith has been told to look at other teams and that he would likely be be replaced in his No. 78 car by 2004 champion Kurt Busch.

Smith, who is truly one of the nice guys in this sport, told the media in New Hampshire that "as it stands right now, I don't believe I'm going to be back with these guys next year." When asked about other options he may have, Smith said, "I've been looking for a while already now, but yes, I've been told I can look."

The Cato, New York native, joined Denver, Colorado-based Furniture Row Racing in 2009. They ran around 18 races together and have run the full Sprint Cup Series tour since 2010. Ryan Coniam was the team's crew chief at the start of the '10 campaign, but after 12 races, he was ousted in favor of veteran Pete Rondeau. It turns out that Rondeu, who had previously worked as the crew chief for drivers such as Dale Earnhardt, Jr, was just what was needed to right the ship.

Smith and his team celebrate their win in Darlington last season

Less than a year later, Smith and Rondeau had scored the team's first win in one of the season's biggest races. The team had won the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. This was also Smith's second career win. Let's be honest. He beat Tony Stewart at Talldega in 2008, plain and simple.

This season, Furniture Row brought former Richard Childress Racing crew chief Todd Berrier on board before the Brickyard 400, which really helped the team improve consistency. They scored back-to-back top 10 finishes at the following two races in Pocono and Watkins Glen.

"I think it's something we can build on," Smith said. "I think the tough part for me is that the beginning of the year was a struggle. We had to make some changes to get better as a team and better as an organization. We made those changes, and it's going the right direction... I want to see it through. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like it's going to be the case right now. So somebody's going to get a really good race car next season."

That somebody appears to be Busch. The former champ has been teamed up with James Finch's Phoenix Racing team all season and the two have had nothing but mediocre results to show for their efforts. The team has had to run blank No. 51 Chevys for most of the season due to a severe lack of funding, so Busch has often had to drive harder to overcompensate for the team's second-rate equipment. This has often resulted in Busch wadding up more than a few race cars, which can be a death sentence for a cash-strapped team.

Busch, whoc is mired in 25th in points and been suspended this season for cussing out a media member, has said that while Furniture Row has "shown good interest," so have several other organizations. "There's a handful of contracts sitting on my desk and it's just a matter of going through some detail with each of the teams."

2012 has proved a tough season for Kurt Busch and the 51 team

Furniture Row general manager Joe Garone confirmed he has talked to Busch, but that the short-tempered wheelman has also talked to other teams as well. One of those teams is rumored to be Richard Petty Motorsports.

This move would be extra heartbreaking for Smith because he moved to Denver last year to be closer to his team's shop. "It's a place where I've been for a while. I'm happy here. I like it here. But sometimes change isn't bad either."

While there are not very many options for competitive rides in the Cup Series garage, Smith remains optimistic that he will have a seat when the music stops in January at Daytona testing.

"There's not a lot out there right now," said Smith. "But it's a situation where there is some stuff going on and there will be stuff that turns up later going on, too. You just have to wait and see."

But while he is a nice guy, Smith is also a competitor. And he knows exactly what he wants to do for a living.

"I know I love racing. I intend on being in a race car next year. I know I haven't peaked as a driver yet, so I feel good about where I'm at in my career. We just have to find that right match going forward."

Office Depot to Leave Stewart-Haas Racing After 2012 Season

Office Depot sponsored Tony Stewart for 22 races during the 2012 season

Office Depot, a sponsor of Tony Stewart's No. 14 car since the reigning Cup Series champion began his own team in 2009 and a backer for 22 of his 36 races this season, announced Sunday that they will not return to Stewart-Haas racing in 2013.

This announcement comes just a few months after the team announced that they were also losing the U.S. Army as a sponsor for teammate Ryan Newman. This leaves Newman with Quicken Loans, Tornados foods and a few patchwork sponsors for next season and Stewart with Mobil 1 for just 14 races. SHR's sizable task of finding major backing for Newman just got a good bit more difficult.

"The decision to significantly curtail our with Stewart-Haas Racing was very difficult, and one that we did not take lightly," said Mindy Kramer, senior director of communications for Office Depot. "However, the changing business landscape warrants a realignment of priorities and resources."

"That being said, Tony Stewart has been an exceptional ambassador for our brand, and he has gone above and beyond in everything he has done for our company. Being a part of his legendary championship run in 2011 was a moment of tremendous pride for everyone at Office Depot."

Office Depot and Stewart won the 2011
Sprint Cup Series championship

SHR spokesman Mike Arning said that the team is in "continued discussions with Office Depot regarding possible future roles the company could have with the team."

With two cars needing significant funding for next season, it seems as if SHR becoming a three car operation will have to wait another year. Rookie Danica Patrick has a full year of sponsorship from longtime partner GoDaddy.com. But with Stewart now needing sponsorship, his team would presumably take precedence over the lame duck Newman.

With his contract up at seasons end, and no major sponsorship on the horizon, SHR has told Newman to test the waters in the Cup garage. Newman could very well end up at a new team next season, as September is late in the game to find any kind of major sponsorship.

Office Depot is just the latest in a laundry list of sponsors who have left the sport in the last two seasons. They join the like of UPS, the U.S. Army, Crown Royal, Red Bull, Verizon, Old Spice, Little Debbie, Golden Corral and General Mills. Until the economy picks back up again, it appears that this trend of major companies leaving Nascar will continue.

Ambrose Wins, Busch Spins in Wild Watkins Glen Finish

Marcos Ambrose emerges from his No. 9 Ford victorious after a hairy final lap

In what was without a doubt the most exciting finish of the 2012 season to date, Marcos Ambrose managed to pull off a last lap pass of Brad Keselowski to score his second win in a row in the Cup Series at Watkins Glen on Sunday. Normally a feat like that would difficult all on it's own, but it was made all the more arduous for Ambrose because the entire track was coated with oil during the closing laps.

The Finger Lakes 355 at the Glen began with a threat of rain, which left teams thinking that they would be racing to halfway for the second week in a row. But when polesitter Juan Pablo Montoya took the green, rain was the last thing on any of the drivers' minds.

Kyle Busch managed to slip around Montoya off the first turn and never looked back. It appeared that if Busch was going to be beaten, the rest of the field would have to wrestle the trophy away from him.

Kyle Busch gets a tap from Brad Keselowski after both drivers
got loose in the oil on the track

Two of the first three cautions were brought out by Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing teammates Montoya and Jamie McMurray. McMurray took a hard hit to the Armco barrier in turn one, while Montoya broke a lower control arm on the left front of his car exiting the inner loop. While it was never determined for sure what McMurray's issue was, it is believed that both cars suffered the same issues.

In between owner Chip Ganassi's worst nightmare, the yellow flag flew for Kurt Busch. He spun his No. 51 Chevy when his right rear tire broke off his car, taking the axle along with it. Joey Logano also experienced issues when his No. 20 car broke a right rear shock mount, ruining his day as well.



Marcos Ambrose and his boss, Richard Petty, celebrate
in victory lane

After a caution for a brief rain shower, Tony Stewart assumed the lead. But his shot at the win was short-lived, as he got loose coming off turn seven and backed his No. 14 Chevy into the Armco barrier at the head of pit road. This meant that the race was a battle between Busch, Keselowski and Ambrose.

In the closing laps, Dale Earnhardt, Jr spun with seven to go. After the subsequent restart, Bobby Labonte's No. 47 car blew a motor, which had put down a thin film of oil all the way around the track. This would normally draw a caution from race control, but Nascar's spotters didn't report any oil to the race stayed green. With the slippery conditions, Busch's 20 car length lead was all but erased.

On the white flag lap, Keselowski, who was now on Busch's rear bumper, slid underneath the No. 18 car. Busch simultaneously slid into Keselowski's Dodge, sending him around at the top of the hill. This brought Ambrose even closer to the lead and by the time they reached the innerloop, he and Keselowski were neck and neck. Keselowski grabbed the lead off the carousel, but Ambrose swung out wide to find more grip. This helped him get by Keselowski's sliding No. 2 off the final corner and score his second career win and his second in a row at the Upstate New York road course.

This win also puts Ambrose in contention for a wildcard berth in this years "Chase for the Championship." If he can manage to score his first oval track win, it would almost assure the affable Aussie a spot in Nascar's version of the postseason. They have been on the verge of that elusive oval win all season and could very well get it next weekend at Michigan or in a few weeks at Atlanta. But with only a few races left, Ambrose and his No. 9 Stanley Tools team will have to work fast to make it happen.