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F1i Poll: F1's Grid Girls, should they stay or should they go?

Ross Brawn's recent comments that Formula 1 is considering ending the appearance of grid girls at Grand Prix has certainly created quite a stir!

Scantily-clad grid girls have been a part of the sport for as long as anyone can remember. But in this day and age, are they still really appropriate? What was fine in the 1960s can look very dated in the 21st century.

You might think that the debate about whether the sport should continue to utilise young woman in this fashion is another example of political correctness gone mad. But this year's storm in Hollywood over the treatment of actresses in the movie industry shows that the concern - and outrage - about any such apparent sexism is very genuine.

We saw a one-off use of 'grid boys' in Monaco in 2015, but that didn't go down well with anyone. And earlier this year, Formula E replaced grid girls with 'grid kids' in Canada, featuring local young racing talent.

So what's your view? Have the grid girls had their day? Should they be consigned to the history books? Or would you like to see them continue as a harmless bit of fun?

Vote in our exclusive online poll and let us know what you think. We'll report back with the results before Christmas.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.