When it was first announced that the History Channel would bring the Top Gear franchise to America, it raised more than a few eyebrows.
After all, the British version of Top Gear is one of the most popular shows in Europe drawing, by some estimates, upwards of 350 million viewers. A staple of the BBC since 1977, the show features a mix of high-performance supercar reviews along with automotive humor that includes outrageous stunts, ‘power laps’ featuring celebrities in everyday cars and a mysterious character known simply as the ‘Stig.’
The franchise has been exported; both Australia and Russia produce their own versions based on the same elements featured in Britain. But with a legion of die-hard viewers, the BBC versions remains the anchor.
When the American version was announced in 2010, many fans of the original show were a bit leery. The US version of Top Gear however debuted in November and scored well enough with viewers that the History Channel has ordered a second season for the fall of 2011.
Thrown into this mix is a friendly, down-home guy previously known only to the legions of NASCAR fans who watch him nearly every week on Speed TV. Birmingham, Alabama native Rutledge Wood is the type of person who makes friends wherever he goes. Almost every week during the NASCAR season, Wood can be seen hosting the various shows on Speed reporting from the infield using his own unique brand of humor, or simply hanging out with fans.
The self-professed car guy (he has owned over 40 cars and trucks ranging from a Volkswagen Rabbit pickup truck to Hondas) took on the role as one of the hosts of the US version of Top Gear last season, teaming with Tanner Foust and Adam Ferrara.
During the weekend of the second NASCAR race of the season, Wood headed to the UK. There he will take part in a BBC Worldwide/Top Gear meeting with his fellow hosts and Richard Hammond, one of the hosts of the UK version of Top Gear.
Prior to leaving, he took time to answer a few questions about being part of Top Gear and what the future will hold.
When you were asked to join Top Gear USA, were you aware of the popularity, the worldwide phenomenon, of the UK version of Top Gear? Had you ever seen the show?
"I had watched the show online and on BBC America for years ... it’s hard not to be a fan of the show. It’s just such a great concept … here’s some cars … now go. Do something with them. So simple and so good. I knew it was big, but to be a fan in the US, you have to either be in the know or it’s a completely foreign concept (no pun intended). I was not truly aware of how big it was until I saw the 60 Minutes piece on it and I tried to wrap my head around the 350+ million viewers worldwide for the franchise of Top Gear.
"I wish I had a camera in my house to let people see my face the first time I realized I was being called for Top Gear ... I had always dreamed of being a part of something like that, but you don’t expect things like that to happen."
What kind of feedback, if any, have you gotten from the hosts of the UK version?
"I’ve actually got a really nice email from Clarkson (Jeremy Clarkson, one of the UK hosts), part of which was released in our Season 2 announcement, where he had watched one of the first shows with May (James May, another of the UK hosts) and Hammond and he talked about how all their fears were put to rest and how they knew we’d have a blast. It was a HUGE blessing, honestly, because this is their format, and something we’re getting the opportunity to do because of their success, so in a way, I’ve felt like we’re dating their sister ... if that makes any sense.
"I’m really excited to meet them one day and hear more about what they think. I’m actually flying to London on Saturday night from Phoenix to be at a big BBC Worldwide meeting where we’ll get to hang with Richard Hammond a bit, and I’m very excited about that."
What was the funniest moment or highlight for you personally from Season 1?
"We had a lot of fun making the show, that’s for sure. For me, to be loaned a half-a-million-dollar Lamborghini is something I never thought was possible. It was so insane, and so much fun. I still can’t believe I went so fast. I actually went 181 mph the next day because we had to do a different exterior shot, so I went for it again and pushed the limits a bit for where I was supposed to start braking. I was being careful, but I also thought, 'How many times in my life could this possibly happen?'"
If you could tell those watching one thing about the show, what would it be?
"Hmm. Well for people who’ve never heard of it or seen it before, I’d want to tell them that they’re about to watch three normal guys do the crazy things that normal guys have always dreamed about trying with cars.
"For the people who have seen it before, especially the fanboys and their mafias online, I’d tell them this: We’re not copying the UK version of Top Gear … we’re making an American version of a show that was created in the UK. Just like TG Russia and TG Australia, we’re using some of the same keys to success that BBC found works, but with American hosts and an American point of view. The UK presenters want our show to do well, just like they want the others to do well.
"It’s really unique that History and BBC Worldwide came together in the way they did to bring an existing global brand to a new audience here in the US. I think the way they worked together was really impressive and laid the perfect groundwork for this show to be successful here for a long time."
What can fans expect to see in Season 2?
"Season 2 is all about bigger and better … across the board. We had to introduce the format to a huge audience here that had never heard of it, so there was certain housekeeping that goes along with that. (There are far more people here who’ve never heard of or watched TG than there are people who have -- for the record.) We want to drive more cars, have more fun, and show even more of the great roads and car culture that this country was built on."
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Despite his success and now the worldwide attention brought on by Top Gear, Rutledge Wood remains the same easygoing guy that has made him popular with fans everywhere. And he hopes to gain new fans when the second season of Top Gear debuts on the History Channel later this year.
“I’m so lucky to be in the position that I am,” he said at the end of the interview. “Not only do I get to be a part of this incredible sport of NASCAR, I’m lucky enough to get to follow my car guys dreams of making TV shows about cars. I can say honestly I still can’t believe I’m on Top Gear. Or, that you can see me every weekend on Speed. It’s such a dream come true.
"I’m hoping that I can show some NASCAR fans some cool cars and cool places to go that they didn’t know about before, and I’m hoping I can show some of the audience of Top Gear how incredibly fun NASCAR is and how easy it is to love it. If I can do a little of both, I feel like I’ll be doing exactly what I’m supposed to do.”
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