Who Is Chris Evans? Meet The New 'Top Gear' Host To Replace Jeremy Clarkson

Make sure to fasten your seat belts and get ready for a whole new “Top Gear.” The BBC has announced the first replacement host for the popular show all about cars, the stars who drive them and globetrotting. The network named radio personality Chris Evans as the replacement for Jeremy Clarkson, who was fired from the show.

So, just who is the new "Top Gear" star? Evans, 49, is a veteran of British broadcasting who frequently upset his bosses over lewd and crude remarks in the '90s. Of course, the successor to Clarkson had to come with his own bit of bad boy cred. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the former husband of “Doctor Who” star Billie Piper once completed a 17-hour pub crawl right before going on-air live. His popularity kept him at the station despite his antics.

Evans, who like Clarkson has gotten into trouble with the things he has said, already forced the BBC to address his comments regarding the addition of a female co-host to the “Top Gear” series. “Absolutely, but not for the sake of it ... Yes, I can confirm that. Definitely. 100 percent,” Evans said in an interview Wednesday morning.

According to the Guardian, BBC2 controller Kim Shillinglaw denied his statement, but said she was looking for ways to address the gender disparity of “Top Gear” in a different manner. “It has always been a very male world, hasn’t it?” she said on Radio 4’s "The Media Show." Model Jodie Kidd was rumored to be in contention for a host role on "Top Gear."

The former hosts of “Top Gear,” Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May, reportedly wished Chris Evans “the best of luck” before the announcement. BBC News said Hammond told the radio personality he “didn’t blame” Evans for taking on the role he and May left after the network sacked Clarkson for allegedly getting into an altercation with a “Top Gear” crew member.