LinkageYes, it’s true. The History channel and BBC Worldwide announced today that work has begun on an American version of TopGear, with US presenters fronting the new show.
The first series of ten episodes will air on History next fall (an American-only season not dissimilar to ‘autumn’, we believe), though exact dates are yet to be finalised. It will be hosted by Tanner Foust, Adam Ferrara and Rutledge Wood.
Tanner Foust’s name should be familiar to TopGear faithful. He’s a renowned stunt driver (The Bourne Ultimatum, no less) and X-Games rally gold medallist who’s also done the business at Pikes Peak and in international ice racing championships. Not only that, he beat Jenson Button around Wembley Stadium during 2008’s Race of Champions. Rumours he learned everything he knows from Captain Slow remain unconfirmed.
Adam Ferrara (very difficult not to type ‘Ferrari’ there, force of habit) is a renowned petrolhead who ranks the Pagani Zonda F Roadster as his top car. Only, we may assume, because the Hyundai i10 1.2 hasn’t made it to US shores yet. He’s also a stand-up comedian and stars in firefighting drama series Rescue Me.
Rutledge Wood is a race analyst best known for reporting on NASCAR. Think Martin Brundle with a beard, but with no need for the words ‘right turn’ in his lexicon. We’re impressed that he owns a 1953 Plymouth Suburban, and even more impressed that it was given to him by The King himself, Richard Petty. That’s a good friend to have.
It hasn’t been decided yet if the show will air in the UK, but we’ll keep bringing you the details as soon as we can. Watch this space.
I'm all for this to work but the reason I like the UK version really has nothing to do with cars. Everything that they review I couldn't afford in 10 lifetimes. It's how they present, the dry British sense of humor, and most of all the challenges. To top this off I'm concerned about their ability to be biased. Look at any sporting event (primarily NFL football) and it seems like 50% of the commercials during a game are for a car or car manufacturer (the rest are for Viagra, beer, and McDonald's). If they fear that saying the wrong thing will get a sponsorship revoked then I don't see it working.
Side note: If you do like cars and have The Speed Channel look for Supercars Exposed. It's hosted by Tanner Foust and he puts some cars through their paces. It doesn't hurt that he is a professional driver. How he presents on that show isn't bad so I can see why they looked him up for Top Gear USA.
http://www.hulu.com/supercars-exposed
