Truex signs for Furniture Row - Report

Martin Truex Jr. will confirm next week that he has signed a deal to drive for Furniture Row Racing in the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, according to FoxSports.com.

Truex will take over the wheel of the #78 car from Kurt Busch, who is leaving the team for Stewart-Haas Racing after a highly successful single-year partnership that saw FRR become the first single-car team to make the Chase play-offs in the history of the format. Busch is currently in seventh place in the standings at the midway point of the play-offs.

FoxSports.com said that Truex's deal was signed on Wednesday night, but other reports suggested that the final details in the negotiation were still being hammered out. However, all parties confidently expect an agreement and a formal announcement as early as Tuesday next week confirming that Truex is joining FRR for 2014.

Truex was in need of a new race seat after the Richmond race-rigging row last month not only cost him a place in the Chase, but also the primary sponsor of the #56 Michael Waltrip Racing car that he has driven for the last four years.

NAPA Auto Ports' decision to exit the series over the controversy surrounding MWR's attempted manipulation of the September race means that the team is being forced to downsize to a two-car line-up in 2014 consisting of Clint Bowyer and Brian Vickers, leaving Truex urgently seeking a new berth.

Veteran crew chief suspended by NASCAR

There was a genuine sense of shock in the NASCAR paddock on Thursday with the announcement by the sanctioning body that veteran crew chief Todd Parrott had been placed on indefinite suspension for violating NASCAR's substance-abuse policy.

The son of legendary crew chief Buddy Parrott and currently crew chief for Aric Almirola at Richard Petty Motorsports, Parrott is still most closely associated with driving icon Dale Jarrett after the pair won the 1996 Daytona 500 in their first race together. They went on to win 21 races over the next five seasons, including clinching the Cup championship in 1999.

Parrott has a right to appeal and request a re-test over his suspension, but otherwise he must undergo the series' Road to Recovery rehabilitation program before he can return to competition. No details as to the specific substance Parrott tested positive for, or by what amount, were disclosed. Parrott's place as crew chief on the #43 will be taken over by RPM's vice president of operations and competition Sammy Johns.

"We have an expectation of all RPM employees to conduct themselves at the highest level of professionalism and within the competitive confines as set forth by NASCAR," said Johns said in a team statement. "We are very disappointed that one of our employees did not meet our expectations and we completely support NASCAR, their policies and final decisions when it comes to the substance abuse policy."

There was no immediate word on whether Parrott would also now be dismissed by the team, as is often the case in the circumstances of a failed substance abuse test in the series.

Front Row retains Ragan and Gilliland

Front Row Motorsports has confirmed that it is sticking with its 'all David' line-up of drivers for 2014, with both David Ragan and David Gilliland announced as returning for next year's Sprint Cup Series season with the team.

"This has been a milestone year for us, and we're extremely happy that two of the guys who helped get us here will be back next year," said team owner Bob Jenkins in a statement. "Having David and David, our one-two punch, back in those cars next year is central to continuing our growth and improvement."

The pair did indeed finish first and second earlier this year when Ragan claimed the team's first win in the May visit to Talladega Superspeedway and Gilliland crossed the line as runner-up. Ragan is currently 26th in the Cup standings, while Gilliland is 29th.

"Getting that first win for Front Row this year was huge," said Ragan. "But we made a lot of other improvements that maybe didn't get the big headlines, like qualifying better and stepping up our mile-and-a-half program, that have made a big difference in our performance every week."

"This is definitely not the same team I came to five years ago," Gilliland added. "We've made big strides across the board, and I'm proud to have been a part of that progress."

Plans for a third car in 2014 - such as the one the team has run this year for Josh Wise - remain unconfirmed.