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Fans overwhelmingly want F1 to keep the grid girls on show!

Our exclusive online poll about whether Formula 1 should keep grid girls as part of the pre-race spectacle has come to a resounding decision.

A massive 82 per cent of respondents were against the sport's new owners ending the practice. Just 18 per cent of those who voted in the poll said it was time for a change.

The debate over the future of one of motor sport's longest-lasting traditions was originally sparked by comments from F1's director of motorsport, Ross Brawn

"We're trying to respect all parties," said Brawn when asked if the sport would continue to use grid girls. He admitted that it was a "delicate topic" in the 21st century.

But our poll shows that fans are firmly in favour of keeping the girls on the grid in 2018 and beyond. And they are not alone.

The response from teams and drivers in the paddock has also been overwhelmingly in favour of keeping the grid girls in place.

Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo explained that grid girls were "part of the attraction of the sport - fast cars and fast girls.

"I would like to keep them. Let's keep them!"

His view was endorsed by his team mate Max Verstappen and by Renault's Nico Hulkenberg. Even team bosses have come out in favour of keeping the tradition.

Gallery: The best of F1's grid girls

Red Bull motorsport consultant Dr Helmut Marko pointed out that American sports used cheerleaders before, during and after every game. "I see no reason why this should not be done in Formula 1."

Team boss Christian Horner demurred from expressing an outright opinion. Instead, he said that "You're never going to get it right."

"Women play a key role [in F1]," he added. "And borrowing a phrase from my wife, girl power is very strong in F1."

"Grid girls were an integral part of Formula 1 for many years," said Ferrari's Maurizio Arrivabene. "I think Ross Brawn has more complex and important things to take care of," he said.

The strong response seems to have caught the sport's CEO Chase Carey off-guard.

"On the list of things I have been dealing with, grid girls wasn't really up there on top, with all respect," he commented.

Formula 1 held a one-off experiment using 'grid boys' in Monaco in 2015, which did not prove particularly popular. Earlier this year, Formula E replaced grid girls with 'grid kids' in Canada to showcase local young racing talent.

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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.