Jake Humphrey leaves F1 – can a female fill his shoes?

It was announced last week that well-known BBC TV presenter Jake Humphrey was to leave his job as presenter of Formula One to join a new BT Vision channel covering Premier League football.

After four years of presenting, with a team including David Coulthard and Eddie Jordan, Humphrey is moving on to pastures new. But what can be said for a female to become the new host?

Coulthard assists with presenting but his main role is commentating with Ben Edwards. Jordan is associated with secondary presenting or using his small frame to weave in and out of large crowds to seek out the drivers.

Lee McKenzie should be seen as a hot favourite. In 2010 she became the first ever female F1 presenter, and while Jake was hosting the Olympics she stepped in for him. But with the dynamic so male-focused, how will F1 work with a permanent female presenter?

Female presenters for sport are very uncommon and the BBC leads the way in encouraging female anchors. Greats such as Sue Barker, Clare Balding and Gabby Logan host a variety of shows relating to sports, most recent being the Olympic Games.

The push for more females to present helps create an association with other sports for females at home. So can a female F1 presenter draw more women to watching motor sport?

One of the real questions to be answered is what are the BBC looking for? Does F1 need a presenter or an expert?

Both Coulthard and Jordan are retired drivers of the sport; they have insider knowledge while expert Gary Anderson takes us through the technical information.

Could the new presenter be someone with little F1 knowledge or experience? After all, isn’t it more important that a presenter connects with the audience instead of spouting technical information that, for the most part, we don’t understand?

It’s unclear as to who is the running for this coveted job, but money is one Lee McKenzie. Not only does she know the sport, and connect well with the audience, she is also female. Wouldn’t it be brilliant for the BBC to have the first female host of the F1?