Perez wanted more: "I think we had the pace to get a double win"

Sergio Perez's third-place finish marks the 15th podium finish in his Formula One career. He excelled by taking the podium as the local hero at the Mexican Grand Prix. He is the first Mexican driver ever to do so. For Perez, that makes this milestone extra special.

Although he was aiming for more, being on the podium in his home race was very special. Perez says this in the press conference after the race. "Of course I wanted more, I wanted to win the race and of course a double win would have been great for the team," he says. "We are so competitive that if we finish third we don't really enjoy that."

This third place, however, feels different for the local hero. "This is one of those days that I have to enjoy. The crowd and seeing so many happy people, especially on the podium, was very special for me. Almost everyone who has been with me from day one was on the podium," Perez referred to his family in attendance.

In the final stages of the race, Perez came dangerously close to Lewis Hamilton but was unable to force his way past the Mercedes driver. "Overtaking is really difficult here given their speed on straights, they were really strong in that. That was a shame because I think we had the pace to get a one-two today," concluded the Mexican.