After it’s third year in the Sprint Cup Series, Furniture Row Racing has announced that they will run a part time schedule in 2009 due to… you guessed it, the economy.

Qualifying for 31 out of 35 races held so far this season, the team has seen its best season since its beginning. With a Talladega pole highlighting their season Team President Joe Garone assures that the organization’s decision has nothing to do with performance.

"This has nothing to do with our on-track performance," said Garone. "This is simply a business decision by Furniture Row of balancing priorities in a tough economy and, from all appearances, looks to be getting even tougher."

Tom Faulkner, the President of Furniture Row Companies, agrees, "Running a limited schedule is simply a cautionary measure. While we've been faring significantly better than most in our category, it's no secret that our business is tied to the health of the economy - in particular, housing starts and real estate sales."

Even with a smaller amount of races being run next year, Garone feels that the team’s paramount days remain in the future.

"We've got some tough decisions to make, but we all know it will take fewer people and resources to run a limited versus full schedule. Garone concluded, “But we're also optimistic that our best days are still ahead of us."