The Barcelona Grand Prix weekend is an odd one. As the first of the European rounds, we have the usual upgrades on the cars (which, on Friday afternoon, appeared to have done little to affect the pecking order), but the paddock feels like a place suspended in a state of stasis.
Everyone is watching and waiting for next week's F1 Strategy Group meeting, and until it is done and dusted with minutes circulated analysis is little more than speculation.
This present state of limbo does not mean that there is no manoeuvring going on behind the scenes, of course. Alliances of every sort are being formed, as the sport's heavy-hitters are finally beginning to wake up to the fact that Formula One is in a state of crisis.
Some of the most interesting developments are taking place far from the Circuit de Catalunya, however. The conclusion that many of F1's famous faces appear to have reached at long last is that the biggest threat currently facing Formula One comes from CVC Capital Partners, and unlikely alliances are being formed as those with competing interests yet the same ultimate goal - deposing the private equity firm - get into bed together.
Recent erratic behaviour from Bernie Ecclestone has led some to question whether the octogenarian is beginning to show his age, but the prevailing wisdom is that the F1 supremo's semi-regular "Ratner-ing" of the sport is simply a tactic to drive down the sale price as he attempts to regain control of F1 from his investor-employers.
The IPO which was supposed to be CVC's curtain call is now little more than fantasy, and the equity firm need to find a way out of the sport without affecting the value of their portfolio. Last year the reported aim was to sell up by July 2015, although with that deadline rapidly approaching there is little sign of a buyer waiting in the wings.
Dietrich Mateschitz has long been Ecclestone's preferred candidate, but Red Bull's recent downturn in fortunes has rather soured the Austrian billionaire's taste for the sport.
The pressure on CVC has been steadily increasing on all fronts in recent weeks, with voices both inside and outside the sport calling time on the equity firm's approach to F1 ownership and their unwillingness to invest in their golden goose.
First came the launch of SaveOurFormula, which is far from being the grassroots, fan-led operation it purports to be. Instead, the slick campaign with the aim of "Let[ting] the bankers who currently own our sport know that enough is enough - it's time to kick-the-crisis-out of Formula One" has links to several formerly high-profile motorsport professionals looking to reclaim their former positions of influence.
Then came public criticisms from the sport's ex-leaders, with both former FIA president Max Mosley and former Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo adding their voices to the growing chorus of F1 stakeholders calling for change.
The Italian called CVC's current approach to F1 "dangerous", and challenged the firm to shit or get off the pot, saying it was time for the investment outfit to commit fully to the sport and invest in it, or sell up to a buyer more interested in restoring F1 to its former state of health. Mosley's approach was to revive the concept of freer competition under a budget cap which he last raised on his way out of the sport in 2009, a move that received instant support from the likes of Sauber and Force India.
What we are seeing is a concerted pincer movement from F1 figures past and present working to foment discontent within the paddock, the sport's fanbase, and the most influential media outlets with the view of forcing an endgame in which the battle lines are redrawn and the power base shifted.
To misquote the Bard, they have cried 'havoc!' and are now letting loose the dogs of war.