The fall of two of Formula One's most successful and historic teams in Williams and McLaren has been a tough watch for many fans around the world but Ross Brawn says it is a demonstration of just how tough the sport is.
F1's Managing Director of Motorsports is a former rival of both teams from his time at Benetton and Ferrari when his teams were going head-to-head with Williams and McLaren for world championship titles.
Brawn believes that recent staff changes in senior positions have contributed to both teams' lack of recent success and that the lack of stability has delayed any recovery attempt.
"Mercedes still have the same people that I found there in 2007 (when it was Honda) and that is more than 10 years of stability," he said.
"That's so important. Williams and McLaren, they went through changes and it always takes a while for those things to settle down.
"They are great teams with a great history, but unfortunately Formula 1 is not a great respecter of histories. It only respects what's going on track.
"We as Formula 1 very much want those teams to get back into a competitive position because they're great teams and great brands. But Formula 1 has no mercy.
"If you're not doing a first-class job, it's demonstrated every Sunday or every other Sunday. They have capacity to get back into a competitive place, but it's a tough job."
Both teams will go into 2019 with an all-new driver line-up with rookies Lando Norris and George Russell filling a seat at McLaren and Williams respectively.
Williams will be hoping that the return of Robert Kubica will be a catalyst in a reversal of fortunes for them whilst McLaren will have Carlos Sainz alongside Norris after he moved from Renault.