No Grid Girls from 2018 onwards

[DanielPT]

Liberty have just announced the use of "Grid Kids", I don't want to see those brats on my TV. (jk)

I guess some people will be complaining about child labour now.

You might mean the comment in jest, but there are already people who are genuinely making hyperbolic complaints that the sport is resorting to child labour and exploiting kids.

To be honest, using kids to at least partly replace what used to be an adult paying job sounds a bit exploitative.

At least in Football they created the kids role/mascots from zero. Unfortunately things are going south with some clubs now selling those roles to the kids parents... Then again Football is not an example to anything.

[Rob Dylan]

Yeah, I think my biggest question now is "where did the Grid Kids idea even come from?". Just the way it's been implemented (I know it very likely wasn't but it) seems like it is a knee-jerk reaction after public debate on Grid Girls. Now I'm mostly just perplexed and asking the question of who actually wants Grid Kids on the grid.

The institutions change, but the issue of tinkering with sideshow issues whilst ignoring greater ones still remains the core issue in F1 governance.

[Wallio]

Yeah, I think my biggest question now is "where did the Grid Kids idea even come from?". Just the way it's been implemented (I know it very likely wasn't but it) seems like it is a knee-jerk reaction after public debate on Grid Girls.

This is exactly what it is. For better or for worse most of the reaction has been negative to the grid girls announcement (I enjoyed the DTM Facebook post offering the ladies jobs myself) so now Liberty is trying to save face by saying "Look we're using kids now! Everyone loves kids! You can't badmouth this! And this was TOTALLY planned BTW! Not pulled out of our arse at all!"

I agree with most on here, if you want grid girls gone, fine. But this, this is stupid.

[Bobby Doorknobs]

Well, as long as there's not going to be a row of them applauding the drivers on the way to the podium...

Yeah, this is just going to be even weirder than grid girls were. Arguably even more pointless, too. Can we just get two people from each of the teams to hold the markers instead? If not they're not too busy? Thanks.

[tommykl]

When the debate started (a bit before the official announcement on grid girls), I saw quite a few people argue for grid kids. I was one of them. Whether or not that was Liberty's plan all along, I don't know, but it's certainly not an idea that doesn't have any support.

[Rob Dylan]

Fair enough, it's simply not one I've ever heard or thought of before. Seems a very strange picture in my head.

[yannicksamlad]

I am assuming the kids won't be doing exactly what the women were doing before, like holding up a sign for ages, and that awkward bit of applauding the podium finishers.
Hopefully they'll do something not too arduous, and drivers will acknowledge them.
Praying they're not expected to hang on to a placard in a strong wind and driving rain for 25 minutes at Silverstone....

[The Chicane]

wow... looking back at this thread is just cringe. Especially my posts.

I didn't explain my opinion very well tbh... and I really didn't want to start an argument.

I hope you guys didn't think I was being sexist or anything because I'm not that sort of person.

[Nessafox]

I'll take your word on that. Don't worry about if, if you went too far, the mods would have told you.

The real question is, did anyobody notice the difference? i personally didn't.

[Rob Dylan]

I guess I haven't really noticed the difference, though when it's pointed out I guess I miss it a little bit. As someone who doesn't have a problem with the concept itself, I would have liked even one or two venues to have "opted in" or something if that had been an option. I guess I still associate some of the venues (namely America and Brazil) with that kind of flashy advertising with grid-girls, and have a nostalgia for that style.

But yeah, I mean I'm not going to lose sleep over it.

[UncreativeUsername37]

I have to admit, as someone with a lot of stereotypically male interests, when grid girls were there, they did made me think "what are those beautiful curves doing behind that girl".

[dr-baker]

I have to admit, as someone with a lot of stereotypically male interests, when grid girls were there, they did made me think "what are those beautiful curves doing behind that girl".

Not so much in the 1970s, I would have thought, with all those angles behind the angels...

[Faustus]

I still think that the privilege of being on the grid holding a driver's board should be a lottery among the spectators. Maybe an extra fee on top of the normal ticket price to be entered into the draw.

[Pacific Edge]

Quite frankly, I'm getting very tired of the feminist/PC brigade trying to put pressure on everyone. That said, I kinda like Faustas' suggestion, it's an origional idea

[Bobby Doorknobs]

Quite frankly, I'm getting very tired of the feminist/PC brigade trying to put pressure on everyone.

I never had the impression that Liberty were getting hot under the collar regarding the issue...

[Ataxia]

Quite frankly, I'm getting very tired of the feminist/PC brigade trying to put pressure on everyone. That said, I kinda like Faustas' suggestion, it's an origional idea

How'd you feel about the vegan sausage rolls then?

[yannicksamlad]

That said, I kinda like Faustas' suggestion, it's an origional idea

Me too - so a lottery is held for a nominal sum per ticket, tickets for lottery sold on the Friday and Saturday ( entry also possible by premium rate text) , all entry costs are donated to charity (maybe) , and the winners are told in time to make sure they are prepared for Sunday when they turn up , get a brief taste of the F1 paddock and then hold the driver entry pole...

Separately I do think the grid kids thing has worked - we see the drivers signing autographs for excited kids just before going off on the 'wave to the crowd' lap , and that's good to see.

[Wallio]

The real question is, did anyobody notice the difference? i personally didn't.

Nah, everyone was too busy complaining about the halo

[Vassago]

Just to say how ridiculous Dorna was calling out Liberty/F1 on the grid girls

Some cleavage on display during the Qatar MotoGP round of all places

https://www.quotidianomotori.com/motogp ... resh_ce-cp

[LadyMarussia295]

I know I'm late, but... as a *F1 fan* I couldn't care less about the presence or the absence of grid people. The only thing I can say, could be, why just grid girls, not a mix of grid girls or grid boys? Or why always dressing them with the Western style, even while in non-Western countries, instead of traditional clothes? But in the end, I couldn't care less about them.

As a *woman* I don't get that much the whole "exploiting women body images is wrong" while talking about women who deliberately chose modeling as their job. I mean, if we focus on the "modeling is wrong" debate, we're pointless. Something like "why should we have to exploit women's body image to promote a motorsport event?" makes much more sense, as there's not a proper relationship with the two.

In the end, more than a right vs wrong decision, I think it was a marketing decision. Liberty Media chose to get rid of grid girls because the contemporary F1 watchers like them less than before or in something cases dislike them.
Also, from what I can see on social networks or internet in general, I noticed that the average American (expecially young people) seems to care about stuff as body image and dress code more than the average European, so I'm not surprised that Liberty Media, as American, did something like that.

[Nessafox]

I wouldn't say europeans care less about image. We can just put these things better in the right context. Or at least we like to think we can.

But yeah i'm looking at this from a not 100% binary trans female standpoint which is probably not corresponding to most peoples views.

Also you have an awesome username.

[LadyMarussia295]

Thanks. I don't know. Once some American girls on Tumblr bashed me for a picture in which I was wearing a dress which showed my knees.
In my home country i wore it during a church cerimony ans it wasn't considered inappropriate.

[dr-baker]

Thanks. I don't know. Once some American girls on Tumblr bashed me for a picture in which I was wearing a dress which showed my knees.
In my home country i wore it during a church cerimony ans it wasn't considered inappropriate.

Flashing knees in church? Oh my! What is this world coming to?

[CaptainGetz12]

I wouldn't say europeans care less about image. We can just put these things better in the right context. Or at least we like to think we can.

But yeah i'm looking at this from a not 100% binary trans female standpoint which is probably not corresponding to most peoples views.

Also you have an awesome username.

At least it's not Marussia with Love...

[Nessafox]

Thanks. I don't know. Once some American girls on Tumblr bashed me for a picture in which I was wearing a dress which showed my knees.
In my home country i wore it during a church cerimony ans it wasn't considered inappropriate.

Right, tumblr.... thankfully not the whole world behaves like people on tumblr.

[LadyMarussia295]

Yeah, social media and real life are different but people from social media watches f1 too.

I don't get the problem about my nickname... a reject tribute here should be allowed...

[Nessafox]

Yeah, social media and real life are different but people from social media watches f1 too.

I don't get the problem about my nickname... a reject tribute here should be allowed...

I mean, it makes you sound like an awesome female villain and the boys are just scared.

[LadyMarussia295]

Oh deer.
I just put a "lady" on it to make clear I'm not a man.

[dr-baker]

Oh deer.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VaU6pqhwur4