[blackwasp]

Liberty Media - the owners of Formula 1, have announced that grid girls will no longer be used for promotional activities from the 2018 seasons. The same policy will be used for GP3 and Formula 2 (formerly known as GP2) that are held alongside Formula 1.

Formula 1 has released a statement saying that grid girls are no longer in tune with the company's vision for the sport. The company states that this practice no longer aligns with the brand values of the sport and mentioned it to be 'at odds with modern day societal norms.' It must be noted that grid girls were present in Formula 1 since the late 80s. The announcement comes after gender equality movements portrayed the motorsport event as a bad example for using glamour girls on the grid. Clair Williams - team principal of Williams has supported this ban. Williams is the only female team boss in the sport.

Formula 1 has also revealed the race start times for the 2018 season. The races will now start after a delay of 10-70 minutes. The authorities claim that this move will enable them to accommodate a wider television audience. All the races will begin 10 minutes past the hour as some of the broadcasters start exactly when the cars are lined up and the viewers miss out on the events just prior to the start. The Bahrain Grand Prix, which is scheduled to be held on April 8, 2018, will start at 6:10 pm (local time) after sunset, while the Brazilian GP has also been pushed back by an hour. The European races (Spanish, Monaco, Austrian, British, German, Hungarian, Belgian and Italian Grand Prix) will all begin at 2:10 pm (UK time). Consequently, the qualifying sessions will also begin an hour later for the aforementioned races.

The Australian Grand Prix, which is the first race of the 2018 season, is scheduled to be held on March 25 at 4:10 pm (local time) - a delay of 10 minutes. The French Grand Prix, which is returning to the calendar after a gap of 10 years, will start at 3:10 pm (UK time) on June 24 as England's second World Cup game is scheduled to be held on the same day at 1 pm.

The FIA-backed World Endurance Championship stopped using grid girls from 2015 in all races. It is not yet clear if other events such as the Macau Grand Prix and the MotoGP will follow suit.



Link to the Team-BHP News

[sharktale]

Originally Posted by blackwasp

Formula 1 has released a statement saying that grid girls are no longer in tune with the company's vision for the sport.

I am now wondering what the vision of the earlier company was.

Maybe the F1 bosses got scared with the outbreak of #MeToo movement. Some of them MAY have a tainted past too.

I think in a way it's positive. The avenues of employment for just being a "pretty face" is reducing.

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by blackwasp

Formula 1 has released a statement saying that grid girls are no longer in tune with the company's vision for the sport. The company states that this practice no longer aligns with the brand values of the sport and mentioned it to be 'at odds with modern day societal norms.'

Read about this last week and to me, this is sad. The latest is Grid Kids are going to replaces the girls.

I do not understand those two lines above. I am curious to know the vision of the company that is such that grid girls do not fit in.

The girls added that little bit of glamour to the event and F1 has always had an element of style and class about it.

I do hope they combine the kids and the girls.

[GTO]

Not happy with taking away the grid girls - as Sandeep stated, they did add glamour to the starting line. Frankly, this is a bit too much of political correctness. Even the grid girls are angry - link to full article.

Rebecca Cooper, a five time F1 grid girl, said on Twitter that it is "ridiculous that women who say they are 'fighting for women's rights' are saying what others should and shouldn't do, stopping us from doing a job we love and are proud to do. [It is] political correctness gone mad."

Cooper also implied that grid girls have been misrepresented and put together a photograph collage to highlight that women who work in her trade are not "scantily clad furniture" and that the outfits are more modest.

For Michelle Westby, working as a promotional model in motorsports led to a successful career as a stunt driver and a drift racing driver.

Someone please take me back to the early 2000s when we had two tyre suppliers, screaming V10 engines, fuel pitstops & grid girls .

However, am pleased that some races will start an hour late. The later, the better for IST!

Originally Posted by blackwasp

and the MotoGP will follow suit.

No chance. MotoGP has its own culture & style of working.

[srishiva]

I think Grid girls being used as holding umbrella to the drivers etc are not something that really adds glamour and comes out looking good. There is a place for beautiful people. And even in our country traditionally woman have a place during ceremonies, functions etc.

Maybe they just dont want any complications and want to concentrate on the sporting aspect more.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by GTO

Not happy with taking away the grid girls - as Sandeep stated, they did add glamour to the starting line. Frankly, this is a bit too much of political correctness

The global society is seemingly on the cusp of women empowerment, feminism and gender equality; acceptance speeches at global awards demonstrate that. To make the situation more profound, there is the MeToo movement.

We now have a conglomerate owning the sport. There will be a myriad of corporate governance, ethics and other jazz that the sport will be subject to. I think this move comes from a growing spotlight on how the role of women is seen at workplaces or society in general. It assumes more importance given how women have been perceived at a sport such as F1. As a layman would perceive it, using women to add glamour and hence, subjecting them to just being a pretty face is in direct conflict with women empowerment.

This is one of things that isn't right or wrong, good or bad. Just one that we'll have to accept: "err on the side of caution".

OT: Time and again, organizers have considered banning cheerleaders in IPL.

[Arjun Reddy]

Originally Posted by blackwasp

. The announcement comes after gender equality movements portrayed the motorsport event as a bad example for using glamour girls on the grid.

Seriously would not mind an odd- even grid formula here. We could have guys standing on the odd numbered grids.

Originally Posted by GTO

Someone please take me back to the early 2000s when we had two tyre suppliers, screaming V10 engines, fuel pitstops & grid girls .

+1, I was just married. I was so hooked onto F1 those days that I used to fight with wifey to stay home on Sunday evenings. Brilliant races. Loved the fuel and tyre strategies.
Compared to those days, F1 is pretty boring now.

[Fullrevs]

The FIA have the 'grid kids' for 2018

Click here for full story

If the Indian GP was still around there would have been an issue with employing kids with our labour laws. All of a sudden its ok for kids to stand on circuits where the track temperature can go past 50 degrees celsius?

[ach1lles]

Morons

In the words of every single promoter ever, a little eye candy never hurt nobody. Grid girls do not feel forced nor out of place at the circuit. The race is quite a glamorous, rich, and borderline ostentatious event. The weekend VIP-ness has no end level. Maybe they want to change that bit and, in their minds, "class up the joint"? From the few I've spoken to, the weekend event is a lot of fun for the girls too.
On the other hand we have unidirectionally voluptuous girls in sport-kinis at UFC events holding up score boards and (just) standing behind the podium, even for 45 mins!

[jfxavier]

I am looking forward to the 2018 season, Grid Girls or no Grid Girls.
The news coming in the grapevine is quite good so far.
Mercedes has supposedly gone for aggressive development of their engine and news of "several" broken exhausts on the test rigs sounded nice as Ferrari themselves have been extremely confident sounding so far. They too believe that they have a monster in their hands.
Another encouraging news is McLaren finding a second or so just from the engine swap, and along with the silent RBR team it augers well for the 2018 season.
Hope that atleast 4 teams can compete for the top spots.
Or do I sound like the F1 fan pre-2016 & 17 seasons

[Porcupine]

I'm sure they've worked this out better than I have, but delaying the time would make some more races more accessible to view, but it would make some more unaccessible, like the American/Canadian which are quite late on IST. But then again, I don't know how big a market India is for them!

[sandeepmohan]

Not really grid girls but sort of making a come back at Monaco.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/44233222

I Like.