New Zealand F1 driver Liam Lawson. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Analysis - It may not have been the result he was wanting but New Zealand driver Liam Lawson has shown he's prepared to mix it with the big boys.
In his second race back in the top league, Lawson finished 16th in the Mexican Grand Prix after starting 12th on the grid.
In Texas last weekend he upset Spanish legend Fernando Alonso with his driving, this weekend it was local star Sergio Perez.
Lawson showed he was prepared to get the elbows out to defend a position and it was the Mexican who was unable to pass and he was not happy about it.
"What the (expletive) is this idiot doing? Is he OK?" Perez said on the team radio.
"It was an incident that was totally avoidable."
It was a personal battle of sorts as Lawson, Perez and a couple of others are contending for a drive in the top Red Bull team next year.
The two then clash again near the end of the race as Lawson returned to the track after a late pit stop claiming Perez was blocking him and the kiwi gave him the finger.
The 22-year-old may not have made too many friends on Monday but he certainly kept his name in the conversations post race.
"I think our pace was strong but we just spent the whole race behind another car.
"Unfortunately in traffic we weren't able to overtake and it just hurt our race. We had the pace to score points but just wrong track position."
Lawson felt the race would not have helped his prospects of securing a full time drive next year with Red Bull which he is tipped to do.
"A race like today is not ideal for that, so I am focused on the next few races to try and recover and score points for the team."
Lawson also had battles with Oscar Piastri, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton in the later part of the race and did not step aside easily to let them pass.
New Zealand driver Liam Lawson during the 2024 Mexican Grand Prix. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Red Bull principal Christian Horner did not get drawn into the Lawson-Perez incident.
"That's racing, we saw a lot of tough racing out there."
Lawson was the lone RB driver in the race after team-mate Yuki Tsonoda crashed out at the start.
With a long first stint strategy with hard tyres, Lawson did climb as high as fourth as others pitted, but a coming together with Williams' driver Franco Colapinto in the closing stages meant he needed an extra pit stop to change the front wing.
Lawson is probably frustrated with a car that cannot match the speed of the top four teams but more time and racing should help.
Lawson won't want to get a reputation for the driving style he showed in Mexico, but it did show that he was prepared to fight for results and perhaps his in future in the sport.
It's not always going to go his way, but he can bank this race and use the experience in Brazil next weekend.
