Formula One heads into the longest season of its history looking for ways to revitalise the sport amid a long-running crisis.
After two years of overwhelming dominance by Mercedes, fans and sponsors will be hoping at least that Ferrari will be able to mount a stronger challenge.
Mercedes’ dominance is not to the liking of F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone who said Formula One has become too predictable and “the worst it has ever been.”
However, it seems unlikely that outfits other than Mercedes and Ferrari - who between them supply engines to eight of the 11 teams - will emerge as serious contenders.
Ferrari, with drivers Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen, look the only team capable of preventing another title duel between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.
“We are close. Whether it is enough we will see,” Vettel said. “If not we are at least equipped to close the gap as quickly as possible.”
The calendar has been extended to a record 21 races, but the impressions from pre-season testing are that it might be difficult to keep excitement levels up over the season.
In the Barcelona tests, Hamilton and Rosberg were able to demonstrate both pace and reliability. Hamilton believes the car is even better than in the last two seasons.
That does not bode well for rivals: Mercedes with either Hamilton or Rosberg at the wheel have won 32 of the last 38 races.
Even Hamilton, who has beaten his teammate to the title the last two season, hopes a team like Ferrari can mount a stronger challenge.
“I hope it is not purely a ‘Lewis and Nico show’ - I hope Ferrari gets involved in that show and that we will have fierce competition beyond me and Nico,” he said.
Rosberg could probably do without a stronger challenge from four-time world champion Vettel, having lost out to Hamilton the past two years. This season may be his best chance of his first title as wide-ranging regulation changes are planned for 2017.
Along with Rosberg and Vettel, German fans will be rooting for Force India’s Nico Huelkenberg and F1 rookie Pascal Wehrlein, the DTM touring champion, who is racing for outsiders Manor.  Germany is also back on the calendar, with Hockenheim, after financial problems forced the cancellation of the race last year at the Nuerburgring, the first time there had been no German Grand Prix since 1960.
For the first time Formula One will be racing through the streets of Baku in Azerbaijan for the European Grand Prix. Ecclestone has never been too bothered by criticism from human rights activists, however the race on June 19 is bound to raise issues such torture, press restrictions and freedom of expression.
Commerce has always been the driving factor behind Formula One.  Ecclestone will therefore see a lucrative opportunity in the F1 debut of the Haas team.
If the team formed by US businessman Gene Haas and powered by Ferrari engines can make swift inroads, Formula One could boost its presence in what has always been a difficult North American market.
In the midst of much wrangling and sporting monotony, every success story is most welcome.