Some traditions leave the stage quietly and then never stop being argued about. When Formula 1 ended its grid girl role before the 2018 season, the sport framed the change as a matter of brand values, while those who had stood beside the cars felt something more personal was lost. Now former grid model Leilani Dowding, speaking ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, is calling for the role's return, pointing to a sport that has grown ever more theatrical and suggesting actress Sydney Sweeney as a fitting figure to lead it. The proposal is a piece of opinion rather than a plan in motion, and for no
Former F1 Grid Girl Leilani Dowding Calls on Sydney Sweeney to Revive Grid Girls Before Las Vegas GP
She found out from the papers, and never made peace with it.
Mark
So what is actually new here? The ban is eight years old.
Mimi
What's new is Leilani Dowding using the Las Vegas Grand Prix as a hook. She says F1's entertainment-heavy direction makes grid girls a natural fit now, and she named Sydney Sweeney to lead it.
Mark
Why does she think the original decision was wrong?
Mimi
She says the objectification argument came from people who had never spoken to the models. She found the paddock welcoming, and she learned of the decision from the papers while in Los Angeles.
Luke
Worth noting that's one former grid girl's account. The source doesn't include other models, or anyone who agreed with the ban.
Mark
And F1's stated reason?
Mimi
That the models no longer aligned with its brand values. That's how the source frames it.
Luke
Right, and the piece doesn't elaborate on how F1 reached that view, so we only have the short version of its reasoning.
Mark
Is Sweeney involved in any of this?
Luke
Nothing in the source says so. It's Dowding's suggestion. No sign Sweeney or F1 has responded.
Mimi
Even the Fox writer doesn't expect it to happen in Las Vegas next week.
Luke
Which makes this commentary, not news of a policy shift. Nothing here says F1 is reconsidering anything.
El Pulso
- A former grid model is pushing to reverse a 2018 ban that many in the paddock still feel was a mistake.
- Her call for a comeback lands just ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, the sport's most showy race.
- She names actress Sydney Sweeney as the face of the revival and openly relishes the anger it could stir.
- Formula 1 has shown no sign of reconsidering, and the commentator doubts it will happen next week.
Some traditions leave the stage quietly and then never stop being argued about. When Formula 1 ended its grid girl role before the 2018 season, the sport framed the change as a matter of brand values, while those who had stood beside the cars felt something more personal was lost. Now former grid model Leilani Dowding, speaking ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, is calling for the role's return, pointing to a sport that has grown ever more theatrical and suggesting actress Sydney Sweeney as a fitting figure to lead it. The proposal is a piece of opinion rather than a plan in motion, and for now the grid stays as it has been since 2018, with the question of what spectacle is for still open.
Leilani Dowding learned that Formula 1 was ending its grid girls from the newspapers while she was in Los Angeles. The change took effect before the 2018 season, and the English model, who had worked the grid herself, has never fully accepted it. The sport said the role no longer fit its brand values. Dowding, now 46, thought the decision was crazy then and still does.
She also rejects the claim that the role objectified the women who did it. In her view, the critics were outsiders who had never spoken to the models, while her own time in the paddock felt welcoming. Now she believes the moment has come to bring the tradition back, pointing to Formula 1's shift toward entertainment and celebrity, and to the Las Vegas Grand Prix as a natural stage.
Her choice to lead the return is Sydney Sweeney, whom she calls a fantastic fit and a personal favorite. Part of the appeal, she admits, is provocation: Sweeney would anger plenty of people, and Dowding is happy to ruffle feathers.
The Fox News commentary supports the idea but doubts the timing. Its author does not expect Sweeney on the grid next week, though it could happen someday. Nothing reported suggests Formula 1 is reconsidering, and the Las Vegas race will proceed without any change to its grid ceremonies.
Leilani Dowding was in Los Angeles when she learned, from the newspapers, that Formula 1 was getting rid of its grid girls. The decision took effect before the 2018 season, and the English model, who had worked the grid herself, has not made peace with it since.
The reason given at the time was that the models no longer fit the sport's brand values. Dowding, now 46, disagreed then and still does. Recalling her reaction in a recent interview with GrandPrix247, she said she thought it was crazy and remembered asking herself what on earth was going on.
She also rejects the argument that the role objectified the women who did it. In her telling, the people who made that claim were not involved and had never spoken to the models. She described them as looking in from the outside. Her own experience of the paddock, she said, was that it was always welcoming.
Now she thinks the moment has come to bring the tradition back. Her case rests on the direction Formula 1 has taken since: a more entertainment-focused approach, with celebrities and spectacle woven into the build-up before the green flag. She sees next week's Las Vegas Grand Prix, the most show-driven race on the calendar, as a natural fit.
She also has a name in mind to lead the return: actress Sydney Sweeney. Dowding said Sweeney would make a fantastic grid girl and that she would love to see her do it in Las Vegas, where she would be one of Dowding's favorites. Her advice to the actress was to get her boots on and get on that grid.
Dowding was upfront that part of the appeal is provocation. Sweeney, she said, would make a lot of people angry, and she joked that you can just picture them raging with steam coming out of their heads. Her idea is to take what the sport already does with celebrities and entertainment and push it much further, ruffling a few feathers along the way.
The Fox News piece, which is opinion-driven commentary, backs the premise but not the timing. Its author does not expect to see Sweeney leading grid girls onto the Las Vegas track next week, though allows that it could happen one day. The writer also called Dowding's proposal a solid plan, adding that all it needs is someone to implement it.
Nothing in the reporting suggests Formula 1 is considering a reversal. The ban from 2018 stands, and the Las Vegas Grand Prix will go ahead next week without any announced change to the grid ceremonies.
Citas Notables
Sydney Sweeney would make a fantastic grid girl. I'd love to see her doing it for the Las Vegas GP.— Leilani Dowding, to GrandPrix247
The only people who would say stupid things, such as that we were being objectified, were people who weren't involved.— Leilani Dowding, to GrandPrix247
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