The 50-year-old host made the announcement on Twitter on Monday (04Jul16).
The rebooted car show has achieved disappointing ratings, and was marred in controversy before it even aired its first episode. Top Gear ended its run with the lowest audience of its current series, according to figures released by the BBC, averaging 1.9 million viewers on Sunday night (03Jul16), a mere 8.6 per cent of the available audience.
Evans announced his decision via Twitter, writing: "Stepping down from Top Gear. Gave it my best shot but sometimes that's not enough. The team are beyond brilliant, I wish them all the best.
The news comes as Evans is reportedly set to face a police probe over an historic allegation of sexual assault. The BBC radio 2 presenter has been accused of grabbing the breasts of a female colleague in the 1990s. Evans has not made any comment on the allegations of sexual assault. He previously denied the claims saying that they amounted to a "witch hunt".
Meanwhile, police have confirmed they are investigating an historic allegation of sexual assault.
In a statement obtained by the Daily Telegraph, a Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "An allegation of non-recent sexual assault was made to police on May 23. The allegation was made by a woman against a man, and relates to incidents in Tower Hamlets in the 1990s. There have been no arrests and no person has been interviewed under caution."
Evans hosted the motoring show with former Friends actor Matt LeBlanc. Since the programme returned to screens last month (May16), after undergoing a makeover following the departure of former presenters Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond, it has faced a lot of criticism.
Chris was accused of being "too shouty", and there were calls for racing driver Jenson Button, who appeared in a segment on the second episode, to replace him.
Chris defended the show, insisting those criticising it didn't represent the show's much wider, and more loyal, fan base.
"I find it hilarious that people who have never made a show in their lives then presume what is right and what is wrong with the making of a television programme," he told BuzzFeed.
"Everyone is entitled to their opinions, course they are... Those people have a loudhailer and that's fine, and by the way, bring it on. That's what I expected."
Chris added: "I've got enough feedback back to know that enough people like it and love it, actually."
Subject: Chris Evans resigns from Top Gear 
