Why Chris Evans leaving Top Gear is great news for the BBC show

If Harris, Reid, and Schmitz are given more screen time, next season could be great

Chris Evans (BBC Worldwide)

After just six episodes, Chris Evans has stepped down from his much-hyped stint hosting Top Gear, saying he “gave it my best shot but sometimes that's not enough”.

It’s no secret that fans were dismayed with Evans’s performance on the show, many criticising him for ‘shouting’ and trying ‘too hard to be Clarkson’. In our own review of the series, we called Evans a “pale imitation of the ‘fracas’ starting presenter”.

Now that the TFI Friday host has officially stepped down, this could very well be the best news Top Gear has had in a long time.

Not only have the BBC shown they’re willing to adapt what they’re doing according to public interest, Evans has left them with some very solid foundations for a great show.

Just look at Chris Harris, Rory Reid, and Sabine Schmitz; three underused presenters who did a fantastic job when given screen time.

With Evans no longer on the show, the BBC can give them the spotlight, allowing a fresh new take on Top Gear and giving some real petrol-heads their time to shine.

Then, you’ve got Matt LeBlanc. It’s no secret that Evans and the Friends actor had a turbulent relationship, one that failed to translate into anything particularly watchable.

Already, we’ve seen Harris, Reid and Schmitz share more chemistry with LeBlanc than Evans ever did, and bumping them up would hopefully give way to a Top Gear with more charisma and personality.

Of course, the BBC may very well be looking to replace Evans. Earlier this season, we saw the brilliant Jensen Button test drive the McLaren 675 LT, leading to dozens of fans calling out for the F1 driver to replace Evans.

If the BBC wanted to put someone in Evans’s place who fans will 100% be behind, Button is the person for the job.

With Evans leaving after just one season, some fans may very well be upset he didn’t try hanging on a little longer. However, with him out, and - fingers crossed - the core foundations of the show staying put, the possibility of a superior Top Gear hitting screens next year is a huge possibility. Let’s just hope the BBC have learnt from their mistakes.