Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas has become the latest figure within Formula 1 to give his thoughts on the 'grid kids' to be used next season, and the Finn thinks the move will be a change for the better.

'Grid girls' have traditionally been used in F1 over the years as part of the pre-race build up, but earlier this month, new F1 owner Liberty Media announced that they would be replaced by 'grid kids'.

"We were informed in advance that a change is planned," Jorn Teske, marketing boss at Hockenheim, host to the F1 German GP, told Bild newspaper.

"We do not know the details of the implementation yet. Even though grid girls would still be very welcomed by us, the idea of grid kids has merit, as well. Formula 1 needs a new, younger audience and if grid kids helps with that, that's a nice idea."

There have been calls for such a change to be made for years, with many viewers seeing the use of 'grid girls' as sexist and outdated.

And Liberty Media, whose takeover ended Bernie Ecclestone's control of the sport, have responded to the demand with a seemingly smart move.

Bottas, who finished third in his debut season at Mercedes in 2017, agrees with Teske, because he believes more kids will now be able to realise their dreams.

"Generally speaking, grid girls have been part of motorsport, but in the future they will no longer be at the F1 races," Bottas told Finnish media outlet Ilta Sanomat newspaper, as per Autoweek.

"Over the years there were some races where we did not have them already.

"The positive side is that many children's dreams can now be realised with access to the grid with the drivers. I think that's really cool."

Following a disappointing couple of seasons, where the title battles have not been as competitive as fans would have hoped, Formula 1 is facing a fight to keep interest levels, and audience figures, high.

And this latest decision would suggest that the sport's powers are looking to the next generation to make this happen.