At last the Formula One circus reaches the shores of Europe. Flying away to the first three races puts a strain on the teams who are all based there, and to be in Barcelona for the Spanish Grand Prix this weekend will be a blessed relief. No shipping of gear, just put it all in the lorries and drive from the factories. It won't just be the teams who are happy, F1 bosses will be smiling too, and not because it's a short hop from their tax havens.
Put simply, they get their television audiences back. For all its global appeal, Europe is F1's bedrock. The championship started there over 50 years ago, and it's where fans have been following the sport for decades. Most follow it on TV and that is where the commercial merry-go-round that surrounds this sport starts.
Of course, there are millions of fans around the world who are equally devoted, including this part of the world. When I was presenting F1 on Star Sports I was always surprised by the number of ardent fans who would stop me and chat about the latest goings on. Bernie Ecclestone is desperate to exploit this commercial gold mine and expand the F1 brand, and races, around the globe.
The problem is to do it without alienating the rump of European fans. Let's be honest, who apart from the most fanatical will get up in the early hours to watch the Australian Grand Prix? Many in Europe have more pressing things to do on an early Sunday morning than watch the Chinese GP.
I remember from my formative days in England that an F1 race only felt right when it was on during, or just after your Sunday lunch. In 1976, when James Hunt won a thrilling championship, the title was decided in Japan. As a 10-year-old fan, there was little chance of following the action live in the middle of the night. In fact, up to then nobody in Britain could. Live coverage was limited to the British and Monaco Grands Prix. But with Hunt locked in a close battle with Nikki Lauda for the title, the BBC decided to pull out the stops.
Television coverage was delayed, but BBC radio broadcast the race live. Ratings were massive, and the TV executives sat up and took notice. So did the rest of the media and Formula One started its march to the important position it holds today in the sporting and media world.