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The difference between being made redundant and what has happened to the grid girls is being made redundant is usually due to financial reasons or your company going bust, the grid girls are a political decision to appease the vocal minority who got offended on the girls behalf, even though it's quiet clear if you read /speak to them they neither felt objectified or exploited.

If of course Liberty have got rid of them for other reasons, then that's a whole other can of worms they don't want to open.

If Liberty wanted to appease both sides, they should have left the decision up to the circuits, then made a decision after a set period about how to proceed, but Liberty didn't do that. Will be interesting to see if MotoGP/BSB/WTCC/BTCC follow the example or whether they follow the approach of some darts promotors who've told their Governing body to go fuck themselves and they'll only stop using walk on girls when the Government deem it illegal.

I've been made redundant three times in the past 10 years, so I'm very familiar with the shittiness of it. If I can move on and find better work 3 times over, I'm sure somehow the grid girls of F1 will survive. I do worry about Ian though.

It's ok, they have decided to copy Formula E:

[tweet]https://twitter.com/adamcooperF1/status/960516083856928769[/tweet]

If anyone can find a reason to object to this, then I got nothing.

After ending the use of grid girls at the end of January, Formula 1 will now put children on the grid as drivers and engineers prepare for the race. The move, emulating that of football, has been undertaken by the FIA in order to appeal to families.

The children on the grid will be chosen by local motor sport clubs "on merit, or by lottery, and will be already be competing in karting or junior formulae," according to the FIA. Their immediate family members will also be invited to the race on Sunday. F1 and the FIA hope that the move will provide inspiration for the next generations to participate in motor sport.

“This will be an extraordinary moment for these youngsters: imagine, standing beside their heroes, watch as they prepare to race, the elite of the elite in motor sport, to be there, alongside them in those precious few minutes just before the start," said F1 managing director of commercial operations, Sean Bratches. "What an unforgettable experience, for them, and their families. An inspiration to keep driving, training and learning so that they can dream of one day being there themselves. What better way to inspire the next generation of Formula 1 heroes.”

The scrapping of grid girls at the end of January was a controversial move by Liberty, with some fans disapproving of the move, and the use of the new-for-2018 halo device, which will dramatically alter the look of the cars. What may be seen as growing pains in a motor sport which has long catered to older, hardcore fans and is only now stepping up efforts to bring in younger generations, is viewed as a divisive shift in emphasis. However, FIA president Jean Todt said that the opportunity will trigger a worldwide growth in motor sport interest – an area which F1 has struggled with in recent years.

“Formula 1 is the pinnacle of motor sport and the dream of every young racer competing the junior series that make up the FIA’s single-seater pyramid, from karting all the way to F1," said Todt. "We are therefore delighted to bring that dream a little closer by giving the future champions of our sport the opportunity to stand alongside their heroes on the grid in the build-up to the race start.

"For the wider FIA, this is an excellent initiative that provides additional support to our member ASNs in their efforts to grow motorsport worldwide through a unique reward they can make available to youngsters participating in their national series.”

I was just about to post the same. According to the article on MotorSport Online, the kids plus their families will be invited to attend the event and be on the grid...

For a so called Media Company, Liberty haven't exactly been doing a sterling job of selling their version of F1 lately have they?

I mean, they probably had the Grid Kids idea already approved to replace the grid girls, but it just seems like this is a reactionary move to their surprise over the grid girls been taken away. Why didn't they just say this in the same announcement if it was already their plan? That just seems basic to me.

The skeptic in me though says that the grid kids will be gamed, and a few family members or friends of family members might get the lucky call.

Well see there's this thing, been the rage for a while now, called pornography, where you get to look at pretty women in different clothing (some times none at all) of a huge variety of cultures. Quick internet search and you'll find it in no time