Bentley has locked in its factory driver lineup for the 2018 GT3 season, with Spa 24 Hours winner Jules Gounon signing in place of Oliver Jarvis.
The 22-year-old Frenchman is the son of '90s Formula 1 racer Jean-Marc, and claimed his first major endurance prize in 2017 when he and Sainteloc Audi team-mates Markus Winkelhock and Christopher Haase won the blue riband round of the Blancpain GT Series in July.
Gounon also claimed this year's German ADAC Masters GT title, and contested a full programme in the Blancpain GT Sprint Cup with the Auto Sport Promotion Mercedes squad.
Bentley started its search for a new driver when Jarvis was announced as part of Mazda's full time IMSA Sportscar lineup last month.
Consequently, Gounon will jump into the M-Sport run Continental GT3 with Jarvis' former team-mates, Guy Smith and Steven Kane.
The sister car, meanwhile, has retained its 2017 lineup of Andy Soucek, Vincent Abril and Maxime Soulet.
Bentley's two crews will contest the full BGTS endurance campaign, as well as the four-round Intercontinental GT Challenge comprising of the Bathurst 12 Hour, Spa 24, Suzuka 10 Hours and California 8 Hours at Laguna Seca.
The manufacturer will run a new, lighter version of the Continental GT3 in 2018, starting at the BGTS Monza opener next April.
“Consistency is key for endurance racing so to have five of our drivers back to continue their long-standing relationships with us allows us to get stronger year-on-year and is testament to the loyalty within our team," said Bentley director of motorsport Brian Gush.
"Jules Gounon has shown that he has the pace and maturity to fit in to a leading team, despite only being 22 years old, and we’re looking forward to supporting him as he develops his career."
"We’re all looking forward to arriving in Bathurst in February and getting 2018 underway.”
Bentley finished second in the BGTS endurance table this year, with Soucek, Abril and Soulet missing out on the title by seven points.
In the IGTC, Bentley placed third in the manufacturers' stakes and seventh in the drivers' championship.
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