F1 doesn't need to make a habit of replacing 'grid girls'

F1 does not need to make a habit of replacing the traditional 'grid girls'. That is the view of Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff, after Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel admitted his surprise on Sunday at having pulled up to find "George or Dave" holding his grid board. "I'll speak with Bernie (Ecclestone) about it," the mischievous quadruple world champion said.

Some, however, applauded the sport's move into 'grid decoration' gender equality, following fabled Le Mans' earlier decision to do away with grid girls altogether. However, the correspondent for Spain's Diario Sport, Laura Lopez Albiac, said Monaco's 'grid boys' were merely a one-off, at the behest of organiser Michael Boeri rather than Ecclestone or the FIA.

Toto Wolff, husband of female F1 test driver Susie, admitted he hopes to see the girls again. "We are used to seeing beautiful women next to the cars on the grid," said the Austrian, "so this was unexpected. I have nothing against the good-looking guys, but in my opinion what we had before was not discriminatory," Wolff added. (GMM)