Karl Stefanovic says he will not discuss his recent marriage breakdown for the "sake of my kids", but his friends say there could be a few other reasons as well.
Stefanovic, who has refused to be drawn on the matter, was a major no show at the Spring Racing Carnival in Melbourne this week, despite having flown to the Victorian capital to host Today, alongside Lisa Wilkinson, who did enjoy a day inside the marquees of the Birdcage, along with the rest of the Today crew.
But for Stefanovic, it was a quick flight back to Sydney, keen to avoid any unwanted publicity which might add further pressure on an already delicate situation with his wife of 21 years, Cassie Thorburn.
"Their separation has become a network problem ... if she really wanted to tip the bucket on Karl, she could ... Cassie really is holding the cards in this ... it is going to cost Karl a lot of money," explained a long-term associate of the couple.
Indeed Thorburn, who has confided to friends she is still in a state of shock about the collapse of the relationship, fired off a warning shot when she hired celebrity agent Max Markson, who also represents Mark Latham and Jeff Fenech, to become her new "agent".
Thorburn had already created tremors for the Stefanovic and Channel Nine camps with her social media postings in which she claimed credit for much of Today's ratings gains throughout the past year, later defending her comments and denying there was anything menacing in her motivation.
Then there was talk of negotiations Markson was undertaking to have Thorburn in the Birdcage marquees on Derby Day, which would have clearly been an awkward proposition if Stefanovic was there too, as he so often has been in previous years.
Meanwhile, the unfinished $8 million Cremorne home PS previously revealed Stefanovic and Thorburn had been negotiating to buy, is yet to settle, and despite reports claiming it will go to Thorburn as part of their settlement, there is mounting doubt about whether the sale will ever go through, which means the couple could lose their $800,000 deposit.