Sergio Perez opened up on the "great challenge" of being team-mate to Max Verstappen as he pledged to fight him for the title in 2023.
This is Checo's second season in a Red Bull car, having finished fourth in the standings last year which yielded one race win. In 2022 he has taken another step, winning twice and regularly stepping onto the podium on the way to a personal best points finish.
Despite those positives, there is a feeling he is still very much the sidekick to Verstappen's superhero at Red Bull. The Dutchman has romped to his second drivers' title this year, and has a gap of 136 points over anyone else in a season he has dominated.
After finishing third at his home race in Mexico on Sunday, a race won by Verstappen, Perez was asked about what it is like to partner the double champion at Red Bull. "It's a great challenge to be his team-mate," he replied.
"Max is operating at a very high level from FP1 through the whole weekend so just had a little learning and trying to beat him and trying to do the stuff he is doing. So it's obviously not an easy task.
"I don't believe there's anyone that can come and just beat him straightaway. He's very solid with the team. He's been here a while so I think I'm just getting closer and closer with the year so yeah, I will give another shot for next year and see what happens."
For once, Perez was very much the man in the spotlight at the weekend. He was in his homeland, being cheered on by his passionate compatriots from the grandstands as he tried to become the first Mexican ever to win his home Grand Prix.
He could not manage it, but still the locals were delighted as he secured back-to-back podium finishes in Mexico City. But there was an unsavoury moment straight after the race which saw Perez wag his finger disapprovingly towards those seated in the stadium section.
That was where the top three in the race were giving their post-race interviews, and when second-placed Lewis Hamilton stepped up to the microphone he was greeted by a chorus of boos from some fans. But Perez did not want to hear that, and made it clear he wanted the seven-time world champion to be shown more respect.
