With the Formula 1 extravaganza edging back towards central Europe, and the next episode of the 2017 season appearing in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia, it seems a lot of the wishes made by the sport’s followers may be coming true.
I may be mistaken, or perhaps I’m just getting used to it, but the sound of the cars, on TV at least, sounds a little more loud, more racy.
The fans wanted that.
The look of the cars is more aggressive with the lower-set rear wings and the wider tyres making the total package look, well, also more racy.
The fans wanted that.
It seems that Pirelli has once again answered the call from the sport to produce tyres that make it possible for the tyres to last almost a whole race — perhaps only one pit stop.
The fans wanted that.
We are no longer seeing a canyon, a ribbon, of a single lane of usable track forcing the drivers to stay on one racing line for fear of getting in the “marbles” the size of small rocks formed by the soft tyres wearing rapidly.
The fans wanted that.
This also has the knock-on effect of reducing the smallest grain of rubber, sometime no bigger than a grain of rice, getting lodged in one of the thousands of slots on those ridiculous front wings and “destroying” the handling of the car.
The drivers wanted that.
The big tyres and the new compounds of rubber are creating more dramatic out-braking manoeuvres going into the corners.
The fans wanted that.
The Mercedes team (and Lewis Hamilton in particular) is a little on the back foot and small slip-ups maybe creeping into the previously robotic-like precision of the organisation.
Although profiting from Mercedes team errors is not the way the opposition needs to win, it is happy to capitalise on any weaknesses shown if it means that a silver car does not see the chequered flag first at each race.
The fans wanted that.
We had, last week in Bahrain, an exciting race all the way down the field and overtaking happening on every lap, topped by a genuine battle at the front — with the winner in doubt until the last handful of laps.
The fans wanted that.
Beyond the racing, it seems the iron fist and grip of now-ousted F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has been levered open and a greater paddock freedom and access is being granted in the interests of opening up that precious stockade to, not quite mere mortals, but a greater number of non-team guests.
This could be something to do with the departure, along with Mr E, of his loyal lieutenant and paddock “enforcer” Pasquale Lattuneddu, never the easiest person to deal with.
The entire paddock wanted that.
We also have a driver, a world champion driver no less, driving in another series.
With Fernando Alonso going to Indianapolis in May, and passing up the mouth-watering opportunity to drive the Honda-powered McLaren at Monaco in doing so, this could be another sign that the previously mentioned iron fist is no longer there.
Perhaps we will see other drivers spreading their wings. And the door for others to follow and drive in other series, as in “the old days” has clearly cracked open.
The fans wanted that.
A mere glance at the championship points table illustrates one of the most important facts. A resurgent Ferrari heads both the manufacturers’ and drivers’ points table, with Sebastian Vettel.
Not by much, admittedly, but that is a good thing being just three races into the season.
It is now a close battle between two teams seemingly equally matched, and that is what the sport was so desperately in need of.
Lewis Hamilton likes that.
The fans wanted that.
A competition between drivers and teams, with Ferrari mixing it with Mercedes and Red Bull close behind, is what we seem to be looking at for the rest of the year.
I am not so naive as to believe that, just three races into a 20-race season means the revolution is on. But it’s all looking good.
And we all want that.