So much for the summer break.
Although there have been a few days when absolutely zilch has been happening, causing some sections of the media to revert to the German GP FIA press conferences for news, the Button saga, in addition to a few other 'personnel movements' has kept F1 fans entertained.
As is often the case, the only ones who will really benefit from the 'Button affair' are the lawyers who will fight it out in the English law courts.
Everyone has an opinion on the saga, not least 'man down the pub', who, for the most part feels that Jenson is "only moving for the money", and that the move appears to be "a step backwards". Who would ever have thought that we would say such a thing of WilliamsF1?
The Button saga blew up late on Thursday evening, once the weekly newsletters had been sent out, and F1 had been (effectively) put to bed for the weekend. Since then we have seen press statement and counter-statement, with everyone, and his dog, voicing their 'informed' opinion.
It has often been said that there a far too many lawyers in the world, even The Simpsons once pictured a world devoid of lawyers - a happy land where everyone was singing and holding hands. In the last few days everyone has become a lawyer.
However the fact is that few of us are lawyers, in addition to which none of has have the full facts before us. Sure we can all form an opinion, but without the full facts we are simply hypothesising. That said, it's quite clear, checking out some sections of the media, that certain interested parties are doing their best to 'feed' various 'facts' into the public domain, hence the various theories as to why Jenson wants to leave Brackley in the first place. Certain information regarding the Honda deal and even performance bonuses has been carefully fed to the media in an attempt to further destabilise the situation and sway public opinion.
It would be easy to point the finger, but what's the point? Pitpass would either be sued, besides which none of it would affect what actually happens when the case finally reaches court, all it would do is further inflame the situation. However, we know from experience that information has been 'leaked' by an interested party in the past - we've been the recipients.
What is most amazing about the Button saga however is the way in which it has completely overshadowed everything else. A couple of years back, a leading civil servant was fired for advising her bosses that "today would be a good day to bury bad news" - she was referring to 9/11.
Last Wednesday, a story came out of Brazil suggesting that Cristiano da Matta was to be dropped in favour of Ricardo Zonta. On hearing the rumour we contacted Toyota but everyone was on holiday. We spoke to a woman in the media department who admitted that she knew nothing of the story and advised us that the people responsible for making comments on such matters were on vacation. Of course, we already knew this, because e-mails to both people had bounced back with the message "on leave until next week".
Yet overnight a press release was cobbled together and sent out at 08:33 next morning. This of course would suggest that da Matta's sacking was not a planned event, but very much a spur of the moment decision. Furthermore it would indicate that the press office was caught as much 'on the hop' as the rest of us, suggesting that the decision came from the very top.
Now Cristiano hasn't exactly set F1 alight, especially after all that rhetoric in 2002 when he promised to come over here and teach Michael Schumacher a lesson. However, has he really been that bad? Was it really worth firing him with just six races to go - simply because the much-hyped TF104B didn't live up to expectations? Is it really all his fault?
Then comes the shock news that Ange Pasquali and Norbert Kreyer are gone, disappeared. This is a team that doesn't mess about.
While we're all getting worked up into a lather about Jenson, what of Cristiano and Ange? Come to think about it, what about Jarno?
A few weeks ago, nobody would have bet on Jenson leaving BAR for WilliamsF1, in much the same way that Jarno Trulli was going to partner Fernando Alonso at Renault in 2005. Then something happened and the Italian - who leads his Spanish teammate by 7 points - fell out of favour. Are we really to believe that it was all down to that last corner incident at Magny-Cours?
Although there are people working furiously ensuring that certain pertinent information is leaked regarding Jenson, Cristiano and Jarno, other drivers such as Justin Wilson, Marc Gene, Antonio Pizzonia, and a whole host of others aren't as lucky.
The Button saga has polarised public opinion, however one faction that certainly knows where the blame lies are the many thousands of Jacques Villeneuve fans. Until last week they had a glimmer of hope - that their hero might return to the team with which he made his F1 debut and won his title - now that dream appears to have been wrecked.
F1 is a murky world, however when it suits them those involved are only too happy to throw open the doors and give us a peek, giving us their side of the story. At other times - especially when money is involved - F1 is tighter than a camel's arse in a sandstorm.
