Top Gear (2002 TV series)/Series 9

Series 9 (2002 format)
The Stig posing with a collection of hot hatchbacks.
Episodes	6
Originally aired	28/01/2007 - 04/03/2007
Original network	BBC Two
Resolution	576i
Aspect ratio	16:9 Widescreen
Preceded by	Series 8 (2006)
Superceded by	Series 10 (2007)

The ninth series of Top Gear premiered in the United Kingdom on the 28th January, 2007, and concluded on the 4th March, 2007, after a run of 6 episodes. The series' main host was Jeremy Clarkson, and he was accompanied by Richard Hammond, James May and The Stig as co-presenters. The series was produced at Television Centre in Wood Lane, London, and aired on BBC Two in a 60-minute studio format. Series 9 attracted an average viewership rating of 7.45 million viewers per episode, with a peak of 8.13 million viewers for Episode 1, and a low of 6.18 million viewers for U.S. Special.

Highlights from this series include the aforementioned special, which despite its comparatively low viewing figures, heralded a new era of Top Gear programming, in addition to Hammond's lauded return in the wake of his 2006 accident. There was also an amateur rocket fabricated from a Reliant Robin, in addition to the first challenge filmed following Hammond's injury, the Limousine Challenge, which tasked the trio with building three limousines from domestically-available models in time for the 2007 BRIT Awards.

The show's sudden increase in viewing figures lead it to dethroning Celebrity Big Brother, then its main rival in the 8:00 PM Sunday timeslot it had occupied since its inception. This increase would be permanent, with a regular viewing audience of 6 - 7 million people until the end of the 2002 format in 2015.