Sochi wants gridgirls in 2019: "Russian girls are beautiful"

The organisation of the Russian Grand Prix is hoping that the grid girls can return to the venue in 2019, despite F1-owners Liberty Media communicating that they don't want to see them anymore as it's outdated.

The grid girls were quite prominent in Sochi this season, despite the ban from Liberty Media, and race organizer Sergei Vorobyov has no intention to change this in the coming year.

"I think Liberty Media's decision was strange and a shock to many," Vorobyov told Sport-Express in Russia.

"The auto industry has long been associated and is still associated with beautiful girls.

"From our side we immediately talked to Liberty Media. Firstly from a safety position we believe it is dangerous to have children on the starting grid. And second, Russian girls are beautiful and we want them at the Russian Grand Prix.

"In January a general meeting with the promoters of all the races is held and I hope that we will hear some updates about Liberty Media's approach to the position of girls in the 2019 season.

"If such changes occur, it will be largely due to the position of the race in Russia."

It's a bit ridiculous to call it dangerous for kids to be on the grid, but that's beside the main point of Vorobyov. Banning grid girls was hailed as a smart idea in general, as it put off many people who thought that parading girls in front of cars was an outdated idea.

The Formula E started banning grid girls last year and replaced them with kids, and the F1 followed that idea this year. There have been a few race organisations that rebelled though, as Monaco, Russia and Singapore still featured grid girls.