The Monaco Grand Prix organisers have confirmed grid girls will appear at this year’s race in defiance of Formula One Management’s plan to replace them.
FOM announced before the 2018 F1 season began that grid girls would be replaced by the new Future Stars initiative, where aspiring young racing drivers take part in the grid ceremony (pictured).
However Automobile Club de Monaco president Michel Boeri told Nice-Matin grid girls will continue to appear at its race. Boeri, who is also the president of the FIA’s Senate and a vice-president of the World Motor Sport Council, said the ACM had raised its objections over the removal of grid girls with Liberty Media.
Monaco previously used both grid girls and grid boys during the 2015 race weekend.
The Russian Grand Prix could follow Monaco’s lead in retaining grid girls for 2018. Deputy prime minister Dmitry Kozak told news agency Interfax it is trying to “reach an agreement” to have them on the grid for its race in September.
“Our girls are the most beautiful,” added Kozak, who also criticised the Future Stars initiative. “It’s wrong at races to lead out children, who are frightened of mechanical things,” he said. “You need grown-ups.”
“In all kinds of motorsport, girls advertise the cars and it looks harmonious and pretty.”
The FIA F1 Future Stars initiative features children aged between seven and 10 who are selected by the local motorsports club and race promoter. They are invited to take part in the pre-race ceremony with the drivers before watching the grand prix.
2018 F1 season
- Honda’s jet division helped F1 engineers solve power unit problem
- McLaren Racing losses rise after Honda split
- Ricciardo: Baku “s***show” was Red Bull’s fault
- “Drive to Survive Episode 1: All to Play For” reviewed
- F1’s television and social media audiences rose last year
Strontium (@strontium)
5th April 2018, 16:54
That didn’t take long 😂
Joss (@racerjoss)
5th April 2018, 16:56
Hmm..
Phylyp (@phylyp)
5th April 2018, 16:58
Seriously, of all the stuff, that’s what had me both laughing and raging! @racerjoss
Shimks (@shimks)
5th April 2018, 17:14
I know. What a fool. @racerjoss @phylyp
Charles King (@charleski)
5th April 2018, 17:42
He probably didn’t bother to think through the implications of what he said: that kids in Russia are so poor they only come across a car once they’ve grown up… I don’t think so.
Sundar Srinivas Harish (@sundark)
6th April 2018, 3:17
As I child I was terrified of the Hotwheels my parents got me for every birthday from 1 till about 14. I preferred plushies.
BasCB (@bascb)
6th April 2018, 7:23
I think the realy reason might also be in the fact that it will be hard to come up with a full grid of up and coming racers (let alone “the best of them”) for Monaco – the ones that are there are possibly already racing competitavely (the Leclerc family for example!).
And in Russia, maybe Vlad likes to look at the girls?
gus maia
5th April 2018, 17:06
This is Putin trying to sow discord in the Western World.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
5th April 2018, 17:19
Heh, the only thing to “worry” about a child being around something like a racecar is that they’d hop into one…
… and embarrass the grown-ups with their performance.
Basil (@flyingbasil)
5th April 2018, 17:22
Ohhh….Kozak is not the prime minister to start with, but yeah puttin small kids in the center of a huge loud crowd might not be the best of ideas…
Theoddkiwi (@theoddkiwi)
7th April 2018, 2:03
The Future Star kids I saw in Melbourne with a crowd of 95000 seems to be pretty comfortable. Hell they looked like they were enjoying themselves.
GeeMac (@geemac)
5th April 2018, 17:30
Did anyone honestly notice there weren’t any grid girls in Melbourne?
Jere (@jerejj)
5th April 2018, 17:36
@geemac Agreed. I didn’t notice the absence of them, and to be perfectly honest, I never really even noticed the presence of them either.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
5th April 2018, 17:40
@geemac – Ha ha, I for one didn’t. It was post-race, when I read a comment to the effect of “See, there wasn’t any problem with no grid girls” that I actually realized they weren’t there (I didn’t really notice the kids either, tbh). Maybe it was the excitement of the first race of the season, or maybe that they didn’t add much anyway.
Forza Maldonado (@forzamaldonado)
5th April 2018, 19:38
I doubt many did. But remember, any change at all is a bad one.
grat
5th April 2018, 23:34
No, but I didn’t get a pre-race show, and even if I had, it would have had so many commercials that I wouldn’t have known what was going on anyway.
Yay ESPN cheap-ass coverage!
Michael (@freelittlebirds)
6th April 2018, 13:12
We didn’t but in all fairness we were watching Martin Brundle for the very first time and the missing girls were the last thing on our minds at the time. It’s a tough year for F1 – I know there’s a race this weekend but I ain’t really looking forward to it as much as I used to in the past. If F1 were Seinfeld before, now it’s become Friends. Speaking of grid girls, I really wish Sky would replace everyone with pretty girls at least.
montreal95 (@montreal95)
6th April 2018, 14:01
@geemac I did. It’s part of the larger PC crap that I detest
fast
6th April 2018, 21:24
i didn’t even notice there was an F1 race in Melbourne
Jere (@jerejj)
5th April 2018, 17:36
I couldn’t care less.
Dan Rooke (@geekzilla9000)
5th April 2018, 17:38
“In all kinds of motorsport, girls advertise the cars and it looks harmonious and pretty.”
….very progressive.
Sonics (@sonicslv)
6th April 2018, 6:33
@geekzilla9000 Do remember though, just because one extreme end of thought is backwards thinking, doesn’t automatically mean the other extreme end is the progressive one.
montreal95 (@montreal95)
6th April 2018, 14:02
@geekzilla9000 Progressive=regressive in reality
Patrick (@anunaki)
5th April 2018, 18:26
Great to see this rebellion.
Neil (@neilosjames)
5th April 2018, 18:52
Hardly surprising… what is (supposedly) ‘right and proper’ in one part of the world is not necessarily ‘right and proper’ everywhere else.
Nick Wyatt (@nickwyatt)
5th April 2018, 20:34
Honestly, how is a heterosexual supposed to react to a Grid Girl? Are you supposed to experience a tingle in the loins, perhaps a partial launch of the Trouser Missile, or merely a wistful “Damn, she’s fine” moment?
I’d really have to suggest that none of these reactions have anything to do with motorsport or sport in general.
Please do explain how one is supposed to react.
Sonics (@sonicslv)
6th April 2018, 6:38
@nickwyatt As a normal male (as I myself thought I am) every time I see an attractive grid girls (which honestly probably only few couples of them – its all matter of personal preference) I just think oh she’s cute/nice/beautiful/has attractive X and move on. More or less the same if I see an attractive girls in other places. But I dunno, maybe if we have the technology to read other people minds, some people will think I’m the worst.
petebaldwin (@petebaldwin)
5th April 2018, 20:59
I always try to read things about Russia with an open mind as the Western press are extremely bias but there is no way to read “It’s wrong at races to lead out children, who are frightened of mechanical things” without laughing. It’s just so utterly stupid! :D
I love the idea that models are really comfortable around cars but young racing drivers are scared of them!
BasCB (@bascb)
6th April 2018, 7:24
:-)
Eddie
5th April 2018, 21:17
A great excuse to miss the 2 most boring races of the year.
/claps
Sundar Srinivas Harish (@sundark)
6th April 2018, 3:16
This kid on the cover photo certainly seems to be taking the news well.
V12Beard (@v12beard)
6th April 2018, 5:12
The only thing worse than Grid Kids would be Grid Dogs. Ironically the two things people have that then insist everyone must share their passion for!
I’d say “bring on the Grid Droids” but models need work too! Stop the hate!
montreal95 (@montreal95)
6th April 2018, 14:03
+1
Ben (@x-f1-x)
6th April 2018, 7:07
Hopefully the turd of a race that’s monaco will be banned in light of it all. Well, here’s hoping anyway. They won’t because “it’s monaco” and they seem to do whatever they want anyway.
fast
6th April 2018, 21:25
turd & monaco are not usually two words associated with one another. bravo
Todfod (@todfod)
6th April 2018, 7:07
Hahahahahahaha. Man that’s a funny statement.
Hmm.. he’s probably right. This Dmitry Kozak is a breath of fresh air in an overly sensitive, politically correct world. I like him already.
Markp
6th April 2018, 14:00
F1 is all about loopholes or trying to take things away through rules for people to then get them introduced again. Normally downforce or engine power. The same will happen with grid girls and I like it as it feels like stupid PC groups from outside F1 force this on a sport just because they want to. Glad grid girls are coming back just as it’s like flicking up a middle finger to PC do gooders and feminists.
montreal95 (@montreal95)
6th April 2018, 14:05
Well done Monaco and Russia for your rebellion against the politically correct thought dictatorship
fast
6th April 2018, 21:31
well, truth be told — the whole ban the grid girl thing really gained momentum after the USGP in Austin where the promoter had hired what appeared to be a bunch of strippers and escorts to be on the grid. not surprising yet the Liberty chief’s wives were seriously offended and as the saying, “happy wife, happy life” goes, here we are. ironic. because every other race hires professional models and pr spokespeople.
Sun Siyuan (@peking901)
6th April 2018, 17:26
Good to hear. Let the girls do what they want to do.
Theoddkiwi (@theoddkiwi)
7th April 2018, 2:08
What about the kids? don’t they have a right to have a go too?
joe jopling (@jop452)
6th April 2018, 20:25
Common sense prevails……fed up of people objecting to everything these days