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Unhinged: The Six New Presenters Of Top Gear Have Been Announced. Will The Show Be Worth Watching? Let’s Look At The New Faces And Find Out…


Unhinged: The Six New Presenters Of Top Gear Have Been Announced. Will The Show Be Worth Watching? Let’s Look At The New Faces And Find Out…

Finally, we seem to have a resolution to the TopGear “fracas” that started when Jeremy Clarkson decked assistant producer Oisin Tymon over a missing steak dinner about a year ago. While Clarkson, compatriots James May and Richard Hammond and producer Andy Wilman are finishing up the move to Amazon Prime for a new show, the BBC has pressed on and has revamped the lineup for the home-country TopGear, with their driver-in-white “The Stig” being the only carryover cast member. But who are the new people you’ll see on television? Some you’ll know, some you won’t, and some will make you wonder what is really going on inside the offices at the BBC. To be fair, it was known for a long time that executives within the channel were tired of the Clarkson-led “laddish” behavior and wanted to rein in some of the controversial bits…but we think that it might actually be bearable after all is said and done. Here’s your new lineup:

Chris Evans: The smiling red-haired fellow with glasses in the center, Evans’s name was tossed into the ring almost immediately to take over. He’s been working for the BBC since the early 1990s, mostly in radio but has also done television. His shining moment on TopGear so far was to let James May drive his 1963 Ferrari California Spyder. Without a doubt, Evans has the biggest shoes to fill, since he’s the de facto leader of the group now, but he’s got the blessing from the former hosts and he’s an admitted automotive addict with a penchant for the expensive.

Chris Harris: The Telegraph, a UK paper, recently referred to Chris Harris as a “virtually unknown”, which proves that UK papers aren’t factual. Harris (right of Evans) has been a host on YouTube’s /drive network, and more recently was running his own YouTube channel, Chris Evans on Cars. Additionally, he has written articles for Jalopnik and will fill in as a highly skilled driver. We’ve featured his work here, including when he got to drift a Ferrari F40 and F50 around a track and when he raced a Rover SD1 in a classic touring car race. The dude can drive, he knows his cars and his humor is that perfect British Dry type. But his appearance on TopGear is a bit of a surprise, after he told CarThrottle that he wouldn’t take the gig last year. If nothing else, he can fall back on his YouTube work.

Eddie Jordan: The oldest of the new presenters, the 67-year-old Jordan (next to The Stig) brings racing knowledge to the table. A former driver (Kart, Formula Ford, Formula Three and Formula Atlantic) and team owner (Eddie Jordan Racing, Jordan Formula One), Jordan knows the ins and outs of Formula One racing and his time as a BBC racing commentator has cemented his ability to talk on camera.

Sabine Schmitz: The Queen of the ‘Ring herself is officially on board, satisfying all who bemoaned the lack of a female on TopGear. And a hell of a pick she is: Schmitz can run rings around virtually any challenger on her home track, the Nurburgring. She knows the Green Hell like the back of her hand, can drive her ass off in whatever you give her the keys to, and to be blunt, is beautiful to boot. A wise decision, Sabine is an excellent addition to the cast.

Matt LeBlanc: If you think that this is Joey from “Friends” behind the wheel, you’re going to be in for a rude awakening. Joey Tribbiani is dead and buried. Mr. LeBlanc, however, is here, and while we have our reservations about his delivery, there is no denying that the guy is a gearhead. Prior to the whole incident, LeBlanc was at the top of the leaderbord for “Star In A Reasonably-Priced Car” with a 1:42.1 lap, which made him not only faster than any other star in any of the cars, but faster than every F1 driver who ever drove the Suzuki Liana (just clipping Dainel Ricciardo’s 1:42.2 lap.)

Rory Reid: Reid (far left) is the unknown here. When Evans was tapped as a host, TopGear put out a request for applications from the world over for (at the time) four presenters. Reid, who had been hosting YouTube channels (most recently Recombu) went through the application process in the hopes of becoming a host and apparently impressed Evans enough to earn his slot. CarThrottle is betting on Reid being a sleeper favorite on the show…and after seeing him refer to a Jaguar F-Type’s HVAC controls in the same context as “a porn star’s nipples”, we’re on board with that bet. That’s the kind of automotive poetry even I wouldn’t bring up…at least, not on film. He’s not all rude and crude, but he has the creativity to make a review something more than “here is the car. Ta-daa!”


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8 thoughts on “Unhinged: The Six New Presenters Of Top Gear Have Been Announced. Will The Show Be Worth Watching? Let’s Look At The New Faces And Find Out…

  1. stitchdup

    Eddie Jordan and Chris Evans will just be annoying. Have a look for tfi friday on youtube to see just how irritating evans will be

  2. Gary Smrtic

    I wouldn’t watch it if they were the best ever. Just because they fired Clarkson, and James and Richard thought enough of him to leave as well. That tells you a lot about how Clarkson really was, so screw the ball-less twits that fired him. Let the show die.

  3. Appleseed

    Yup. Kill it before it starts, so we can replace it with a sitcom about a guy, a quirky girl, and a dinner.

  4. Rick

    It’ll always be compared to the original and will always be found wanting. Have mercy and let it die. There aren’t enough good motor shows on the air. Spend your money on a different concept.

  5. Spanners.C

    Will there first item be reviewing a Truck-Load-Of-Fail?
    Ill Pass
    I’ve already replaced TopGear with RoadKill

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