Ferrari confirms Allison's return to Maranello

Following his departure from Lotus as Technical Director and rumours that he may be on his way to Ferrari, the Scuderia have now finally confirmed that James Allison will return to Maranello in September.

A statement from the team reads: "As from this coming 1st September, James Allison will join the Scuderia in the role of Chassis Technical Director. At the same time, Pat Fry will take on the new position of Director of Engineering. Both men will report directly to the Team Principal of the Gestione Sportiva, Stefano Domenicali."

The September start date also means that Ferrari has managed to resolve the contractual issues with Lotus which would normally require Allison to complete his gardening leave, making it unable for him to commence work at a team before the start of 2014. One source suggested that Ferrari has bought out Allison's Lotus contract, an unsurprising turn of events knowing that the Enstone team is on the back foot with its payments, including Kimi Raikkonen's salary.

Allison is a highly respected engineer in F1 and has helped design several successful cars at Renault F1 and later Lotus. Before that time, he was at Ferrari between 2000 and 2005, during which the Scuderia recorded 4 driver's championships in the hands of Michael Schumacher.