From the moment Finn Russell introduced himself to French rugby with two tries and a 20-point haul on his debut for Racing 92 last August, it was difficult not to think of him as a sports car now operating in a land of monster trucks.
His ability to leave rivals choking on exhaust fumes was bound to take the breath away. But there was always a risk that he might bump into one of the behemoths who dominate the landscape in the Top14.
That juncture arrived last Sunday for the fly-half, with the concussion he suffered in Racing's game against Toulouse ruling him out of Scotland's showdown with France on Saturday.
Finn Russell (right) is out of Scotland's Six Nations match with France due to concussion
Gregor Townsend is astute enough to recognise that, sooner or later, this was always going to happen; his best-laid plans could be ambushed by the harsh realities of Russell's new life in Paris.
But that doesn't make it any more palatable. Not when the injury was sustained slap-bang in the middle of the Six Nations.
For all that Russell's decision to swap a Glasgow postcode for one in the Parisian suburbs brought an expansion of his rugby education and an inflation of his bank balance, there would come a point when Scotland would be left counting the cost of his lucrative contract.
The injury is in the middle of the Six Nations campaign and is hugely frustrating for Scotland
It is something that Townsend has spent this week coming to terms with. Russell is no longer on the SRU's payroll. It really is as simple as that.
Racing call the shots in terms of when he does and doesn't play. Townsend is quick to acknowledge the fact that, previously, the French club had been fairly agreeable over how they used Russell.
There were times that the SRU had asked for their star playmaker to be rested and, as such, a middle ground had been struck. But Pat Lambie's recent retirement meant that Racing simply had to play him last weekend. As far as they were concerned, that was the bottom line. End of story.
Townsend, who has handed the No 10 jersey to Peter Horne in Russell's absence, was understandably frustrated on Thursday.
But, when push comes to shove, he accepts that there are times when Scotland will be powerless to prevent Russell's paymasters from playing him as and when they see fit.
Townsend has spent this week coming to terms with Russell's injury as it hampers his plans
With Greig Laidlaw also playing his club rugby in France and Stuart Hogg set to join English Premiership side Exeter Chiefs as of next season, Townsend criticised what he feels is 'not a level playing field' for his Scotland players in comparison to their Six Nations rivals.
Asked if he found the circumstances around Russell's injury frustrating, Townsend replied: 'You could certainly class it as that because he's got injured between two Six Nations games.
'He could have been injured, obviously, during the Six Nations - injuries are random. It is disappointing, though, that he played a Sunday before a Test match - and that was always one of the risks of him playing in France.
'When they've signed a player, they've signed him for all the
