Red Bull's Sergio Perez believes the Italian Grand Prix stewards could have been a bit more "sensible" in judging the overtake on Charles Leclerc that earned him a five-second time penalty and deprived him of a podium finish at Monza.
From P8 on the grid, Perez drove a steady race to progress up the order and slot himself among the top three after the elimination of title protagonists Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen.
But the Red Bull driver's position among the race's leading trio had come to the detriment of Leclerc whom Perez had passed while cutting the first chicane.
Despite clearly gaining "a lasting advantage" over the Ferrari driver, Perez failed to give the position back, an oversight by the driver and his team that left the stewards with no other choice but to add five seconds to Perez's race time.
©RedBull
From third on the road at the checkered flag, the Mexican fell to fifth in the event's final classification.
"It was a real shame we didn’t get the podium, we got it on track, but we lost it later on," lamented Perez.
"To be honest we expected a bit more from the stewards in the sense I had nowhere to go, it was either cutting the corner or having contact with Charles.
"I know that’s the rule but as a team we thought probably they can be a bit more sensible here and have a wider view but it didn’t happen."
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner was equally frustrated with the stewards' sanction.
"That was tough because we were expecting a call from the stewards to say ‘give it back’, the call didn’t come, then when the penalty comes up, the gap is opening.
"That was tough for him, he drove a good race, third on the road and fifth overall, so it was tough for him."
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