Fresh on the heels of his suspension on March 10, “Top Gear” presenter Jeremy Clarkson has been removed from his position on the show. Clarkson was suspended on the recommendation of Danny Cohen, the BBC’s director of television. Cohen asked that an internal investigation be launched after Clarkson reported himself to the BBC, following an incident on March 4 in which he allegedly punched “Top Gear” producer Oisin Tymon.

The incident took place at the Simonstone Hall Hotel in North Yorkshire, after Clarkson was denied hot food at the end of the day’s filming. The hotel chef had already gone home.

According to Ken MacQuarrie, the director of BBC Scotland and the man who led the internal investigation, Clarkson physically attacked the producer, resulting in Tymon’s lip swelling and bleeding. In addition to the physical assault, Clarkson verbally attacked Tymon, swearing at him and threatening to have him fired.

On March 25, Lord Tony Hall, the BBC’s director-general, announced that Clarkson’s three-year contract, which expires at the end of March, would not be renewed. Following the director-general’s statement of Clarkson’s dismissal, the North Yorkshire Police asked to see MacQuarrie’s report, stating that they would take any necessary actions.

It is unclear whether Clarkson’s co-stars, Richard Hammond and James May, will remain on the show, since both of their contracts are up for renewal at the end of the year. James May has even updated his Twitter profile to read “former TV presenter.”

The BBC has not decided whether it will broadcast the last three episodes of the season, which were pulled following Clarkson’s suspension, and Hall has asked BBC Two controller Kim Shillinglaw to handle the challenge of how to renew the show for the 2016 broadcast season.

Several candidates have been brought up as potential replacements for Clarkson, such as model and former racer Jodie Kidd, comedian John Bishop, Formula 1 reporter Suzi Perry, sports broadcaster Adrian Chiles or road tester Vicki Butler-Henderson, who counts Clarkson as a personal friend.

In addition, while Clarkson has been fired from “Top Gear,” that does not discount his return to the BBC, said creative director Allen Yentob.

“Top Gear” first began as a TV show in 1977. It was presented by television journalist Angela Rippon for its first two seasons, with a multitude of different presenters filling in during later seasons. The original Top Gear lasted for 45 seasons (a total of 515 episodes), until its cancellation in 2001.

In 2002, Jeremy Clarkson and original series producer Andy Wilman convinced the BBC to reverse the decision to cancel the series. The original presenters for the new seasons consisted of Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and Jason Dawe, who only presented for the 2002 season, before being replaced by James May. The trio of May, Clarkson and Hammond presented for another 21 seasons, totaling 174 episodes.

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