Bruni out, Pier Guidi in for WEC Ferrari GT

The departure of Gianmaria Bruni from Ferrari's factory GT driver roster was confirmed today after a protracted contract dispute.

Bruni is hotly tipped to be joining the Porsche factory GT team later this year but the terms of his breaking a multi-year Ferrari contract mean that he will not be able to race for a rival marque until July 2017, preventing his addition to a full season line-up in any championship this season.

Ex-Minardi F1 driver Bruni has been racing Ferrari GT cars since 2007 with considerable success, including three class victories at the Le Mans 24 Hours (2008, 2012 and 2014), double championship wins in the GTE class of the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2013 and '14 and the class championship title in 2011's Le Mans Series. He has been a near ever-present in the WEC, missing only one race since 2012 and scoring 12 class victories and a further 13 podium finishes.

However, Bruni has been unsettled at Ferrari in recent months, despite successfully negotiating a multi-year contract to stay with the marque's factory GT program at the start of 2016.

He is to be replaced in the AF Corse Ferrari team in the FIA WEC by fellow Italian Alessandro Pier Guidi, now confirmed as a Ferrari factory driver, who will share the drive in the team's #51 Ferrari 488 GTE with ex-GP2 star James Calado. The Briton raced alongside Bruni in 2016 (pictured). The team's second WEC entry will remain in the hands of Italian Davide Rigon and Briton Sam Bird.

Pier Guidi is a long-time favorite of AF Corse and recently took part in a driver shoot-out for the vacant seat together with former IMSA racer Alex Riberas, ex-DTM star Miguel Molina and GP3 standout Nyck de Vries.

The 33-year-old Pier Guidi arrives on the factory roster after a career that has thus far seen more than 30 GT race victories across Europe, North America and Asia in some 200 race starts, mostly aboard Ferrari machinery – including a win at the 2014 Rolex 24 at Daytona in a GTD-spec Ferrari 458.