All season Fernando Alonso has been a man who has looked slightly out of sync with his new team. As a double world champion who commanded all that lay before him at Renault, he has found himself in an unfamiliar position in 2007.
No matter how hard McLaren has tried to give their star drivers equal billing, Lewis Hamilton has been centre of attention as he has blasted his way through his first Grands Prix.
But we witnessed a role reversal on Sunday evening in Monaco.
Now Lewis is the one who needs reassurance. From countering claims of a Hamilton bias, Ron Dennis found himself denying favouritism directed towards his Spanish star.