The Australian Grand Prix will be the first Formula One event without grid girls after the governing body decided they weren’t ‘appropriate or relevant’ to the competition.
Grid girls have been a mainstay of each event for years, holding the driver’s names and numbers above their car prior to races, lining the hallway to the podium for the successful racers and joining the winners on stage for the post-race festivities.
Jane Stewart, the managing director of Promotional Models Australia and former grid girl, told Daily Mail Australia F1 is the more ‘glamorous’ sector for models and she is ‘concerned’ for the ramifications the decision could have on the industry.
‘The grid girls are the complete package when it comes to Formula One, it is very different to Superbikes or ring card girls, the way they’re dressed is conservative,’ Ms Stewart said.
‘It is going to affect the sport, and they also need to take into account from a models perspective these girls choose to do the job.’
The Australian Grand Prix will be the first Formula One event without grid girls after the governing body decided they weren’t ‘appropriate or relevant’ to the competition
Grid girls have been a mainstay of each event for years, holding the driver’s names and numbers above their car prior to races, lining the hallway to the podium for the successful racers and joining the winners on stage for the post-race festivities
F1 decided the practice had no place in its future, releasing a statement Wednesday they would no longer feature the models
F1 decided grid girls have no place in its future, releasing a statement Wednesday saying they would no longer feature the models.
‘While the practice of employing grid girls has been a staple of Formula 1 grands prix for decades, we feel this custom does not resonate with our brand values and clearly is at odds with modern day societal norms,’ commercial operations managing director Sean Bratches said.
We don’t believe the practice is appropriate or relevant to Formula 1 and its fans, old and new, across the world.’
PMA employs 1,500 models across Australia and Ms Stewart said whenever the F1 grid girls come up she is inundated with applications.
‘Every girl wants to be a grid girl, They love it. It’s glamorous, it’s renowned,’ she told Daily Mail Australia.
‘These jobs from a models perspective is in high demand. This is every model’s dream, put them on the grid, it sets up their career.’
PMA employs 1,500 models across Australia and Ms Stewart said whenever the F1 grid girls come up she is inundated with applications
‘Every girl wants to be a grid girl, They love it. It’s glamorous, it’s renowned,’ she told Daily Mail Australia
The ongoing presences of the glamorous models had come under review in recent months, with the internationals darts competition making the decision to stop the use of women often in little clothing.
Formula One had recently moved away from the over-sexualisation of its grid girls and used models dressed in attire relevant to the culture of the race’s nation.
The clothing of the grid girls at Melbourne’s Australian Grand Prix saw a huge change in 2017, with plunging necklines and black leather as seen in years gone by replaced by green and white playsuits.
The promotional girls will pair their jumpsuits with a white cropped jacket, sophisticated white heels and a hat – each designed to incorporate the colours of the event’s sponsor, Rolex.
The event has also seen higher profile figures become ambassadors, with Instagram models Elyse Knowles and Brooke Hogan acting as the faces of the event in 2015 and 2017 respectively.
Instagram model Brooke Hogan smiles with Red Bull and Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo
The Block star and Instagram model Elyse Knowles was the face of the 2015 event
The clothing of the grid girls at Melbourne’s Australian Grand Prix saw a huge change in 2017, with plunging necklines and black leather as seen in years gone (left) by replaced by green and white playsuits (right)
However, the sport is currently undergoing a mass overhaul, including the controversial re-branding of the logo and constant tinkering with rules, and they made the decision to end the feature.
Jane Stewart, the managing director of Promotional Models Australia and former grid girl, told Daily Mail Australia F1 is the more ‘glamorous’ sector for models and she is ‘concerned’ for the ramifications the decision could have on the industry.
‘The grid girls are the complete package when it comes to Formula One, it is very different to Superbikes or ring card girls, the way they’re dressed is conservative,’ Ms Stewart said.
‘It is going to affect the sport, and they also need to take into account from a models perspective these girls choose to do the job.’
PMA employs 1,500 models across Australia and Ms Stewart said whenever the F1 grid girls come up she is inundated with applications.
‘Every girl wants to be a grid girl, They love it. It’s glamorous, it’s renowned,’ she told Daily Mail Australia.
‘These jobs from a models perspective is in high demand. This is every model’s dream, put them on the grid, it sets up their career.’
Jane Stewart, the managing director of Promotional Models Australia and former grid girl, told Daily Mail Australia F1 is the more ‘glamorous’ sector for models and she is ‘concerned’ for the ramifications the decision could have on the industry
‘Every girl wants to be a grid girl, They love it. It’s glamorous, it’s renowned,’ she told Daily Mail Australia ‘These jobs from a models perspective is in high demand. This is every model’s dream, put them on the grid, it sets up their career’
The company requests images of outfits and clear instructions before assigning models to the job so the women are aware of their requirements and can assess their comfort.
She said she hasn’t yet heard from her clients about F1’s decision, but has ‘concerns if there is a flow on effect.’
It is not known yet whether the other major motorsport codes will make the same decision.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted V8 Supercars and Australian Superbike Championship for comment.
The Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, which begins on March 25, will be the first without the models.