Perez reflects on 'pretty insane' drive to podium

Sergio Perez has branded his battle to get onto the podium for the Italian Grand Prix as 'pretty insane' with two Ferrari drivers.

The Mexican started from fifth on the grid and managed to overtake George Russell in the opening stages, then battled with both Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc late on in the race, passing both to nab second place behind winner Max Verstappen.

Perez believes there was an important factor impacting his progression: "It was so difficult to overtake, we were lacking straight-line speed. I was close at the Parabolica but it was not enough," he said.

"I was most of the time 0.3s [behind] I knew 0.2 would give me a chance, but 0.3 I will not even get close.

"So to get through Charles [Leclerc] and Carlos [Sainz], it was pretty insane because I had to use my tyres a lot."

After running wide at Turn 1 multiple times trying to get past Sainz, the Red Bull driver eventually managed to secure second.

"I had to put the pressure on Charles and keep out of the DRS from Carlos, then it was a lot of fighting with him and we managed to get both of them," he said.

Perez: I feel more comfortable in the car

Perez is back on the podium after a tricky weekend at Zandvoort, with the Mexican working hard on optimising the car setup at Monza to maximise his results.

"I think we've done a lot of progress on the setup side," explained Perez.

"I'm feeling a lot more comfortable in the car, so I do expect that will see the best form in the next races."