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For six weeks a battle raged back and forth over going to either Barcelona or Bahrain for Formula 1's two pre-season 2017 tests before the final decision was facilitated by the simple expedient of consulting the relevant sporting regulations clauses, then deciding which of two conflicting clauses held sway.
At the heart of the matter lay two opposing agendas: one faction wished to test in hot climes ahead of major technical revisions for 2017; the other cited costs and proximity to their respective team bases as reasons for their insistence on Barcelona as the test venue, as had originally been agreed by all teams and the FIA.
It should, though, never have to come to this, but so convoluted and contradictory is F1's rulebook - certainly in parts - that a group of at least 13 grown men debated two alternatives over four grand prix weekends before eventually settling upon a return to the tried and tested Spanish venue that has served the championship so well for over two decades.
