// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
The Grand Tour's new presenters: 'I hope we prove the critics wrong'
Francis Bourgeois, James Engelsman and Thomas Holland are the new hosts of the motoring show, which was released on Friday on Amazon Prime Video
For more than two decades, Top Gear and The Grand Tour were defined as much by the three men presenting them as by the cars they drove.
Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May built one of television's most recognisable partnerships, meaning anyone taking over The Grand Tour was always going to face a daunting task.
Now YouTubers James Engelsman and Thomas Holland and, perhaps most unexpectedly, train enthusiast-turned-internet star Francis Bourgeois are stepping into their shoes for the new series.
And, with initial reviews generally mixed, they knew they had some convincing to do.
"They literally changed the car world," Holland says of the previous trio.
He understands why some fans have questions about whether the show should continue with anyone else.
"They're completely justified to feel that, because they did the same thing that we did - which is grow up watching Clarkson, Hammond and May.
"The show was a very important part of our lives as car enthusiasts."
Engelsman says they themselves initially had many of the same doubts that viewers will have.