As the Formula One circus heads to Barcelona for the opening race of the European season, we look at five talking points prior to Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix.
1. Can Max Verstappen reward Red Bull's bold move?
In an interview with Press Association Sport last month, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner gave perhaps the clearest indicator yet that he was ready to shake things up. "We have a stable of four drivers and two are on loan at Toro Rosso," Horner said. "We have the ability, at any point in time, to move things round should we wish." Yet, none of us would have foreseen the haste in which Max Verstappen was bumped up to Red Bull with Daniil Kvyat demoted back to Toro Rosso. Kvyat has been made a scapegoat for ending Sebastian Vettel's Russian Grand Prix, and scuppering team-mate Daniel Ricciardo's race, too. But the move to promote Verstappen, just 23 races into his Formula One career, is more about Red Bull doing all they can to keep hold of their 18-year-old protege - particularly with Ferrari sniffing around - than discipling Kvyat. For the Russian however, his days in the sport now appear numbered at the tender age of just 22.
2. Lewis Hamilton needs to focus on the race
Lewis Hamilton will be keen to put a rather turbulent week behind him after he courted a number of negative headlines for posting videos of a night out in Miami. The 31-year-old, on a seven-race winless drought, appeared to be smoking a shisha pipe and drinking tequila from a bottle in the videos which were uploaded to his Snapchat account in the early hours of Thursday morning. In contrast his team-mate Nico Rosberg, whom he trails by 43 points in the championship, competed in a charity run at Mercedes' headquarters in Brackley.
3. Mercedes put conspiracy theories to bed
Ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix, Hamilton and his Mercedes team have moved to firmly quash any further talk of a conspiracy. Mercedes wrote an unprecedented 1,100-word open letter in which they insisted there was no ulterior motive to Hamilton's poor luck this season. A couple of days later, Hamilton said he had "1,000 per cent trust" in his team in a message to his four million fans on Facebook. Perhaps now the conspiracy theorists, described by Mercedes boss Toto Wolff as "lunatics" - and he's not wrong - will not be afforded any further oxygen.
4. Don't hold your breath for a London Grand Prix
Following the outcome of the London mayoral contest, Bernie Ecclestone was asked whether there will now be a race staged in the capital. "Next year if it's possible," he replied. "There is a small technical issue, who is going to pay for it, but other than that I can't see any dramas." So, could Hamilton and Co be whizzing past Buckingham Palace, Big Ben and Tower Bridge in 2017? Not quite. Ecclestone may describe it as "a small technical issue", but unless he can find a backer who is willing to part with hundreds of millions of pounds, then a race on the streets of London will remain what it has always been: a pipe dream.
5. Esteban Ocon has Jolyon Palmer looking over his shoulder
Esteban Ocon, the 19-year-old Frenchman, will replace British rookie Jolyon Palmer in opening practice in Barcelona on Friday. Naturally, the decision has led to suggestions that Palmer, already under pressure after a mixed start to his career, could make way for Ocon on a more permanent basis. Meanwhile, Englishman Alex Lynn will drive for Williams at next week's first in-season test in Barcelona.
Source: PA-WIRE
