It wasn’t quite the same with its closest conceptual rival, the Maserati MC20, with which I went through a very similar process. I love the way it looks, its explosive V8 engine and the way its superbly damped carbon chassis and allows the car to travel point to point very rapidly indeed. And at sensible road speeds I’d say it was close to matching the McLaren as a thing to drive and clearly outpoints it for sheer sense of occasion and visual appeal. But ultimately it is a far less capable car. Not only is the McLaren far easier to live with thanks to being quieter, more comfortable and easier to see out of, ultimately it’s better to drive too: on the limit the MC20 experience is significantly compromised by a lack of feel in both its steering and brake pedal leading to a markedly less satisfying and indulgent driving experience.

Meanwhile Ferrari continued to show why it remains the dominant force among supercar manufacturers. When I first drove the SF90 in the summer of 2020 I rued the fact that its driven front axle added weight, made  the car less consistent on the limit and essentially removed the boot so you couldn’t actually travel very far in it. And I wondered whether Ferrari might learn that lesson a produce a lighter, scarcely slower, massively more practical and there for usable rear-drive car along similar lines. And the 296GTB is precisely that car. It is too often compared to the Artura because both are powered by 120deg V6 engines with plug in hybrid drives attached, but the truth is that in price, power and positioning, the 296GTB is junior hypercar offering quite devastating levels of performance. I thought it was fabulous: so ridiculously rapid, yet remarkably easy to drive, brimming with sense of occasion but unlike the SF90, unspoilt by serious flaws. It’s probably the best Ferrari I’ve driven since the LaFerrari almost 10 years ago, a period during which the overall standard at Maranello has been kept astonishingly high. Which is why I’m still not sure why I didn’t quite love it.

Unlike the Porsche Cayman GT4 RS. This was the year in which I was also dazzled by the new GT3 RS with its race car levels of downforce, adjustable diff settings and dampers that can be tuned for bump and rebound from the comfort of the driver’s seat. But actually it was the back to basics GT4 RS, lacking entirely in such gizmos as it was, that put the biggest smile on my face this year. When you have a 4-litre flat six yelling in your ear at 9000rpm, a whipcrack paddle shift and the most rewarding, flattering handling you can imagine, you just don’t need anything more. Or perhaps that’s just me.

There’s plenty more of interest in store for us in 2023 as the internal combustion engine waits for time to be called in the Last Chance saloon. I’m probably most looking forward to driving Gordon Murray’s GMA T.50, almost 30 years after I first drove the F1. Will it rewrite the rules again, and make us rethink what can be achieved within the envelope of road car ability? I hope so. But the car I am probably most curious to drive is the Ferrari Purosangue, its vastly expensive, all-purpose road weapon and the first four door production car in its history. You might even call it an SUV. I suspect very strongly that Ferrari will not.