Six months ago, it was far from crazy to think that the WRC could be on the verge of a new dawn. With Sebastien Loeb - the man who had made the championship his own for the past nine seasons - on his way out, a new era of close competition between Citroen and newcomers Volkswagen seemed at hand.
Here we are in July however, with seven of thirteen rallies completed, and Sebastien Ogier has established a virtually unassailable 64 point lead in what has transpired to be a damp squib of a contest.
It was clear from the outset that the Ogier-Volkswagen combination was going to be potent, but few anticipated just how little time it would take for the sport's new kids on the block to not only surpass, but dominate a post-Loeb Citroen team with their Polo R contender.
The fact that Loeb, who has only been present at three rallies this year, is the best-placed Citroen driver in the WRC points standings tells you all you need to know about how Mikko Hirvonen and Dani Sordo have failed to step up to the challenge presented before them by Ogier.
Ironically, had Loeb opted to remain in rallying full-time for another season, chances are we'd be enjoying a nail-biting dual for supremacy between two of the best drivers the sport has ever seen. Instead, "the other" Sebastien has simply taken over where his predecessor left off.
Such domination has been detrimental to spectator and media interest in rallying over the last decade, and that sad trend will most likely continue if Ogier can't be seriously threatened by any of his rivals - perhaps to the point where WRC will cease to exist in its current form.
But, for each an every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction - where rallying, easily the most popular form of motorsport besides Formula One in the UK ten years ago thanks to British stars Colin McRae and Richard Burns, is fading from the public consciousness, rallycross is gaining rapid momentum.
Rallycross saw its popularity peak in the UK during the late 80s and early 90s, immediately after the spectacular Group B cars, banned from rallying on safety grounds, became staple fixtures at famous rallycross venues such as Lydden Hill and Brands Hatch.
The likes of Martin Schanche and Kenneth Hansen became some of the most respected names in motorsport with their success, thanks in large part to the high quality TV coverage enjoyed by rallycross in the UK during this period.
As the 90s progressed however, TV companies began to neglect rallycross in the face of increasing competition from other forms of motorsport, in particular touring car racing - in essence, rallycross on all-tarmac tracks, but with larger grids and more manufacturer involvement.
The decline of rallying has nonetheless opened up something of a vacuum in the motorsport world in recent years, a vacuum into which rallycross is expanding after a lengthy spell in the doldrums. The epicentre of this renaissance is the USA, a market in which the sport was hitherto unknown.
Few people outside of North America are likely to have heard of the "X Games", a sporting competition organised by US sports broadcaster ESPN which features "extreme" sports like motocross and skateboarding. In 2010, the decision to add rallycross to the event was taken.
It should come as little surprise that the US has warmed to rallycross. Short, action-packed races contested by a small pack of extremely fast cars may be just what the new generation of American motor racing fans are crying out for. NASCAR, a series whose races routinely exceed three hours, had best take note.
The popularity of the X Games rallycross competition spawned the four-round Global RallyCross (GRC) championship in 2011 (something of a misnomer when you consider every round was held in the US), which has attracted US talent such as Travis Pastrana, Tanner Foust and "gymkhana" star Ken Block, arguably the face of the new generation of rallycross.
Most striking of all however was the presence of the two time WRC champion Marcus Gronholm. The Finn's presence created a surge of renewed interest in rallycross in Europe, leading his old adversary Loeb to enter - and win - the 2012 X Games rallycross event in between his rally commitments.
The 2012 GRC, of which the X Games was a part, expanded to six rounds, and despite being still firmly based in the US attracted a large contingent of international drivers who took part at various stages in addition to Gronholm and Loeb.
2013 has been the first season that GRC has lived up to its name, adding rounds in Brazil, Germany and Spain (the last of which was ultimately cancelled due to bad weather) to its established roster of US oval venues and the X Games.
More big names from other motorsport disciplines, including DTM champion Mattias Ekstrom, ex-F1 pilots Scott Speed and Nelson Piquet Jr., and Indy 500 winner Buddy Rice have tried their hand at rallycross, broadening the sport's appeal further.
The presence of WRC champion Petter Solberg, who lost his Ford seat at the end of last year, has also given a timely boost to the European Rallycross championship, whose increasing popularity is reflected by a live TV deal with satellite channel Motors TV. It's not quite the BBC coverage UK fans once enjoyed, but it's better than nothing.
Kris Meeke will become the latest rally driver to try his hand at rallycross as he enters the French round of the European championship next month. Once regarded as Britain's next big rallying star, a lack of funds has blighted the Ulsterman's career recently, denying him the chance to compete full-time for Prodrive in the WRC last year.
Though Meeke insists he remains focused on rallying, if his rallycross debut goes to plan, he would be well-advised to put his rally aspirations to one side. After all, the WRC is in an extremely difficult position, whilst the advances of rallycross show no sign of abating on either side of the Atlantic.
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