Force India driver Giancarlo Fisichella is to join Ferrari for the remaining five races of the 2009 season.
Force India driver to replace Badoer
Force India driver Giancarlo Fisichella is to join Ferrari for the remaining five races of the 2009 season.
A statement released by the Silverstone-based team on Thursday said that the 36-year-old Italian had been released from his current contract with immediate effect.
Fisichella will therefore replace Luca Badoer in time for the Italian Grand Prix, to be held next weekend at Monza.
The news comes just four days after Fisichella finished a fine second behind Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa.
He had already qualified on pole position - a first for the team, as were the eight points Fisichella scored in the race.
Speaking on Thursday, Fisichella, who has three grand prix victories to his name, said: "I am very grateful to [team owner] Vijay Mallya for allowing me this opportunity to drive for the Scuderia Ferrari team.
"It is true that it has always been an ambition to do this, and for Vijay to have allowed it to become a reality is very generous.
"I hope in my turn I have helped Force India grow up and be on the right path to achieve their own ambitions. They are now a very competitive team and I wish them all the very best."
Proposal
Mallya said on Monday that his driver would stay put but has since revealed he was contacted by Fisichella requesting a move.
He said: "Giancarlo and his management team approached me yesterday with the proposal from Ferrari.
"For any Italian driver, a Ferrari race seat is a long-held dream and for Giancarlo it was no exception. No one should stand in the way of this.
"Furthermore the agreement will secure Giancarlo's long-term future with Ferrari and it would be incorrect to jeopardise this, particularly when Giancarlo has made such a vital contribution to Force India."
Ferrari later confirmed that Fisichella will be retained next season as their test and reserve driver.
Mallya also said he had not reached any financial settlement with Ferrari and that the deal "has been made in good faith and for the good of Giancarlo and the sport in general".
Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali said: "We have chosen Fisichella because we can expect him to make a valuable contribution in this final part of the season.
"Giancarlo has shown, throughout his long career, that he is fast and competitive and we are therefore proud to be able to run an Italian driver in our home race."
Poor performance
The decision to replace Badoer with his countryman comes after two poor performances from the Ferrari test driver, who was asked to stand in for the injured Felipe Massa.
Badoer qualified and finished last in both the European and Belgian grands prix, the first F1 races he had contested in almost a decade.
Domencali added: "We wish to thank Luca Badoer for the team spirit he demonstrated in these circumstances: it is a shame he was unable to show his true worth in these last two races, tackled under conditions which anyone would have found difficult."
Massa himself suffered serious head injuries in a qualifying accident at July's Hungarian Grand Prix.
Ferrari had wanted Michael Schumacher to stand in but the seven-times world champion ruled himself out because of a neck injury.
Earlier this week, Ferrari said they anticipated Massa would not make a return to the cockpit until next year.
Force India have made no announcement regarding Fisichella's replacement, although reserve driver Vitantonio Liuzzi appears favourite to step up.
