Jenson Button happy with his achievements during the 2011 F1 season

The McLaren driver enjoyed one of his strongest seasons in Formula 1, being Sebastian Vettel's closest challenger in the title battle.

Button, who has won three races this year, is 10 points ahead of Fernando Alonso in the standings with just one race left.

The Briton said on Thursday in Brazil that he takes more comfort in beating Mark Webber in the Red Bull than in finishing in second place in the championship.

"It is not so important, I suppose," he said of finishing as runner-up, "but I think it is nice to know over a season that you can finish in front of some very good drivers and to finish in front of a Red bull would be great considering Seb won the title in a Red Bull and Fernando was strong in a Ferrari.

"If I get a chance to beat them of course I will be happy - but we would rather come away with a victory than finishing second in the championship. It's still nice if you come away with second.

"I am pretty happy with what I achieved. We haven't been quite good enough to win the championship but we have had a pretty strong year."

Button also played down the significance of having beaten team-mate Lewis Hamilton this year, saying his performances in certain races like Japan are a more enjoyable memory.

"I think if we were fighting for the world championship we would come out on top it would be a special feeling, but not doing that right now," said Button. "For me I am happy with what we have achieved this year in getting the most out of the car.

"Japan stands out as a great race, but also other races I have not been able to win, so I take more comfort from the results, not about beating my team-mate over a whole season."