And so it comes down to this.
Ten months after the cars took to the track at Jerez for the first day of testing here we are in Abu Dhabi, the title fight down to two men, two men from the same team.
Looking back, other than the remarkable recovery made by Renault, Red Bull completing just 3 laps on that opening day, we have seen tragedy and triumph.
We have seen great wheel-to-wheel racing throughout the field, we have seen two teams go to the wall, we have seen rule changes, gimmicks, the horror of Jules Bianchi's Suzuka crash, Fernando Alonso's departure from Ferrari and Sebastian Vettel's divorce from Red Bull.
We've seen Bernie in the dock, Bernie dismissing young fans, we've seen Bernie doing more U-turns than we usually witness at the local junction with the A12.
But in the end, despite it all, despite the fears over the reliability of the new power plants, despite the complaints at the new sound of the sport, like so many times before it comes down to two brave young men going head to head.
Whilst some claim that with 10 wins Lewis Hamilton is the moral victor already, teammate Nico Rosberg has kept him honest all year. Indeed, it was only in Singapore that the Briton finally took the lead in the title race.
Yes, there has been controversy, but in the end it comes down to these two men and their quite wonderful Mercedes F1 W05 Hybrids.
Let us hope that today's race sees the title decided on track, the result of one driver out-classing the other, rather than in a technical failure, a clash at the first corner (or any other corner) or in the Stewards HQ several hours after the race.
Yet, as much as today's race is about two men fighting for the ultimate goal, it is also a day when we might be bidding farewell to a number of drivers, possibly even a team or two.
As Marussia insists there is still hope, let's hope that over the weeks and months ahead Caterham can salvage something. Whilst Finbarr O'Connell, the man charged with Administering the team in these difficult times, looks like a rabbit caught in the headlights, he is no fool. Let's hope that the Leafield outfit finally has someone at the helm who really cares about the team and its people.
As Gurmit so succinctly put it earlier this week, Sauber, Lotus and Force India are seeking more of the financial cake, however, the yawning chasm between the sport's haves and have-nots grows ever wider, self-interest very much the name of the game. Indeed, on Friday, as teams recover from the financial cost of this year's rule change, Christian Horner was calling for another change to the engine format.
As for drivers, today is possibly the last time we see Jenson Button in an F1 car, and whilst he retains a dignified approach deep down he will be hurting, since 2000 this is all he has known. Furthermore, he is still capable of winning.
Other drivers still to confirm their plans for 2015 include Kevin Magnussen, Jean-Eric Vergne, Adrian Sutil, Esteban Gutierrez, Max Chilton, Kamui Kobayashi and Will Stevens, who has done such an impressive job thus far this weekend.
While talk of today's race is dominated by the title fight let's not forget the various others scores that might be settled.
Much as we hate them the double points could yet see Ferrari overhaul Williams (unlikely), McLaren overhaul Ferrari (unlikely), Force India overhaul McLaren (very unlikely on recent form) or even Sauber opens its 2014 points account. And then there's Caterham.
Sebastian Vettel would no doubt like to sign off from Red Bull by beating his teammate Daniel Ricciardo, but with the two demoted to the back of the grid due to some flexing naughtiness we shall just have to see who does the better job of working their way through the field.
Just behind Vettel, in terms of points, is Alonso, and we are sure the Spaniard will want to sign off in style, or, in the style of the Daily Mail, 'show Ferrari what it will be missing'.
Of course, Valtteri Bottas could, and should, leapfrog them both, the Williams very strong here, while Felipe Massa could do with closing the gap to his teammate.
With no really good seats remaining, other than that which he already fills, Button doesn't need to impress prospective employers however, maybe a good enough result would get Ron to pull his finger out.
We remain unconvinced by Abu Dhabi but the fact is we're stuck with it. It is never going to be a classic, but it is clear that money talks and therefore it is likely to remain host of the season finale for some time. Overtaking is difficult here but it is not impossible, so let's hope for lots of heart in mouth moments but no outright silliness.
Assuming that it's a clean fight, whoever wins will make a worthy champion and even the runner up, based on Mercedes obvious strength, knows that there's a good chance there will be a similar showdown in twelve months.
Long before the race the drivers gather for the 'end of term' photo, it's a nice touch, unusual for the sport these days, that there are empty seats for the Marussia duo.
A two-stop strategy is theoretically fastest for the 55-lap race. The quickest strategy goes: start on options (supersoft), change onto Prime (soft) on lap eight, then soft again on lap 31. A three-stop sprint strategy is also feasible, but carries risks in terms of traffic.
The fastest three-stop strategy is: start on supersoft, change to soft on lap seven, soft again on lap 23 and soft once more on lap 39. As long as there are not too many hold ups with traffic, this strategy is in theory less than two seconds slower over the cumulative 305.355-kilometre race distance.
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