By: Toby Christie – Follow on Twitter @Tobalical

He’s not flashy, he’s not considered the greatest driver in the garage area, but Regan Smith put Furniture Row Racing on the map. A once laughable organization, which struggled just to make races, is now a respectable up-and-coming team in the Sprint Cup Series. It however looks like Furniture Row is ready to move forward without the man who has delivered their only victory to this point – Regan Smith.

Furniture Row Racing has been a Sprint Cup Series team since 2005, and in the eight years since being founded they have racked up two top-five finishes, and seven top-10 finishes – none of which have been recorded without Regan Smith behind the wheel. From 2005 to 2008 the team struggled with little positives with drivers such as Kenny Wallace, Joe Nemechek and Jimmy Spencer behind the wheel.

Since 2009 Smith and FRR had grown together. They had crashed, blown motors and struggled together, but they were turning a corner. Then last year Smith broke out for the then struggling race team. He nabbed eight top-five starting spots, and a thrilling victory in the Southern 500 at Darlington. The performance was so impressive, that the rumor mills had the team very close to adding a second car alongside Smith’s No. 78.

The 2012 campaign hasn’t been nearly as productive, but it’s unrealistic to expect a team to match such an overachieving effort as Regan Smith and Furniture Row had last season. After 19 races they had struggled mightily, and opted to cut ties with crew chief Pete Rondeau.

In came former Richard Childress Racing crew chief Todd Berrier. Since the acquisition of Berrier things have honestly been turning around for Furniture Row Racing. In the eight weeks since Berrier took over the pit box, they have reeled in three top-15 finishes including their only top-10s of the season (ninth-place finishes at Pocono and Watkins Glen). Now just as they are gelling again, it appears that Regan Smith is on his way out.

One thing is certain… this move is utterly baffling.

– Toby Christie is the lead Motorsports writer for Sicknissified.com, and he is also the co-host of The Final Lap Weekly. Toby can be reached via twitter or email. Tweet him @Tobalical or email him at tobalical@sicknissified.com. You can also follow Sicknissified.com on facebook and twitter.