Just moments ago, news broke that Joey from Friends, aka American actor Matt LeBlanc, is leaving Top Gear after one more season.

While this was his first endeavor as a host in a car show, he was generally well received by the audience – unlike former co-host Chris Evans, who left after the 2016 season ended. After the latter’s departure, LeBlanc took over as the “main” host of the show, and he did pretty well, showing driving skills along with finely crafted funny lines.

Yet, despite admitting that Top Gear was “great fun”, he felt that “the time commitment and extensive travel… takes me away from my family and friends more than I’m comfortable with.”

So that’s that. While it is unfortunate to see him depart the world’s longest-running, and best known, car show, and we think BBC’s execs feel the same, the harsh reality dictates that they must find a replacement.

Now, who could that be? We don’t think that Clarkson and Co will ever return – not after the debacle that put them at loggerheads with the Beeb in the first place. Someone like Tiff Needell or Jason Plato would seem like the obvious choice. And we’re pretty sure they’d do a great job indeed.

However, Top Gear is not just a car show; it’s mostly a show that happens to feature cars in it. With that in mind, we thought out of the box and found five individuals who would inject fresh air into TG, boost its ratings and make viewers say “Matt who?”.

 

Donald Trump

Pros: Has a ton of experience as a host, what with The Apprentice, the Miss World pageant etc. Half of America loves him. He Tweets a lot. Like a lot.

Cons: Will absolutely not test foreign cars. The other half of America loathes him.

 

Pros: She fills all the necessary quotas. She knows her expensive cars very well.

Cons: Her outfits might be too racy for prime time. She might want BBC to rename the show “Speeding Up With The Kardashians”.

Elon Musk

Pros: He definitely knows cars. He is photogenic and doesn’t mince his words.

Cons: He’ll promise to test 10 cars per week, but will only deliver two – at some point. Is adamant that trying out vehicles on Mars is an awesome idea.

Sergio Marchionne

Pros: He is the head of Ferrari. And Maserati. And Alfa Romeo. He, too, knows cars.

Cons: He’ll lay out a five year strategy for TG episodes. We’ll see the first around 2028.

Mark Zuckerberg

Pros: Top Gear will become a Facebook staple. What else could you want?

Cons: He’ll definitely be keeping tabs on the rest of the crew’s personal data (and on everyone else who watches the show too).