I have to admit I feel sorry for Jenson Button.
Not because of his playboy lifestyle or massive salary, and not because he gets to live the schoolboy dream of being a racing car driver.
It is simply because he has been usurped by Lewis Hamilton.
When Button burst onto the scene everyone was talking him up as potentially the next Formula One world champion from Britain, the man to follow in the wheel tracks of Damon Hill and Nigel Mansell.
But circumstances have somewhat conspired against the Honda driver, and unfortunately for Button he has not been in the right place at the right time.
Honda has built a reputation as the most committed of Japanese manufacturers when it comes to racing, a team with virtually a bottomless pit when it comes to funding.
So scrapping it out in the lower reaches of the Formula One pack is nothing short of embarrassing for Button and his bosses, and that leaves the fast man from Frome with a dilemma.
Does he continue to pick up his very big salary and accept his lot, or does he push for a move to a more competitive team?
That's a question I am sure is occupying the minds of not only the man himself, but also the people who advise him.
But the people who matter most when it comes to deciding if Button will ever get close to a world title are potentially some of his on-track rivals.
The likes of Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso will have more of a say in where Button ends up than the British driver himself.
That's because what happens with Raikkonen and Alonso will also determine the fate of everyone else in the F1 paddock.
With a world title on his resume there is nothing for Raikkonen to prove and his recent dip in form, while team-mate Felipe Massa has taken the title race to Hamilton, has led many to speculate he is considering turning his back on F1.
It is expected Raikkonen will at least see out his contract, which has another year to run, so seemingly putting Alonso's plans of a move to the Maranello marque on hold.
A fly in the ointment for Button is that Honda are trying to prise Alonso away from Renault, the team who made him a two-time world champion, but where he has endured a miserable return this year.
That is despite his claims he is far happier now compared to last season when he was embroiled in a torrid season at McLaren.
Should Honda persuade Alonso to sign - even if only for a season should a vacancy then arise at Ferrari courtesy of Raikkonen's exit - then who goes? Button or team-mate Rubens Barrichello?
The Briton surely possesses the greater potential as the younger man compared to the veteran Brazilian, but then on-track to date this year there has been little to choose between them.
Honda boss Ross Brawn and chief executive Nick Fry certainly face an intriguing dilemma as to whom they would retain should they convince Alonso his future is with them.
If that comes to pass, it is inconceivable there will be no place for Button, but if so, where would that leave him ahead of next season? Without a drive? Surely not.
But hey, stranger things have happened in F1, and then I really would feel sorry for Button.
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