It Looks Like Top Gear USA Is Dead
It really isn’t a great time to be in the business of making car programmes for TV. Ratings for Top Gear have declined dramatically since the series opener (although they are now slowly recovering) amid rumours of Matt LeBlanc wanting to quit, Fifth Gear looks to be over, and now it seems Top Gear USA is finished too.
On his Facebook page yesterday, TG USA presenter Rutledge Wood said: “I’m very sad to say, but Tuesday night’s #TopGear on History is the last TG US that we have shot for you. I’m not saying Top Gear on History is done, but it’s done for the immediate future on History.”
So, there is still a possibility of it continuing, but if its run on History is almsot certainly over and no other network has picked it up yet, the future doesn’t look promising. It’s an unfortunate time for the show to be disappearing too: with reception to the revamp of the ‘original’ Top Gear mixed thus far (an issue TG USA had originally, as it happens), many TG fans will have undoubtedly liked the idea of an alternative.
Top Gear USA first aired in 2010 with Adam Ferrara, Tanner Foust, and Rutledge Wood at the helm. The show is currently at the end of its sixth - and presumably final - series, with the last episode airing today.
Growing up on a diet of World Rally Championship highlights and lengthy Gran Turismo 2 sessions, a life in cars was as good as inevitable for Matt.
Comments
„It really isn’t a great time to be in the business of making car programmes for TV. “ I think that’s mainly because of the internet. These days, there are so many outlets on YouTube that do car stuff, it’s really difficult to convince a passinate petrolhead to sit down for an hour at a set time of day to watch some questionably entertaining people do very restrained activities with cars. The car-themed entertainment business has largely moved on to a medium that offers more freedom.
We also have to remember that history channel has a terrible time keeping their shows running. All viewers want now are reality shows like Pawn Stars or Counts Customs
I m happy, there was Top Gear UK, was enough cause the first one and even the BEST.
Thats why the shows didn’t resonate well with viewers. The wrong channel hosted it.
It was never alive anyway.
Roadkill is the best show . .
I always liked US. Even before the host change with UK. Sure a lot of it was obvious just scripted rewrites of UK banter. But some of it was top. And the cars they had on that show. I remember the first episode I watched got me hooked. They were deciding GMs best car and the had an Olds Cutlass Supreme, a Roadmaster and a Fiero. Was a great episode. And let’s not forget the time they try to make a Mustang glide.
Pegasus I, I think Adam called it.
Oh yeah, I frogot about that…
It’s sad because we need more car programmes but the current ones were just awful, I want current top gear to live on but only if Evans isn’t in it
Aww I liked it better than the old Top Gear Uk.
Amazon should pick it up, so we can have two motoring shows a week