The Mexican finished the session in 12th place and missed out on Q3 for the third race in a row.
Like other drivers Perez opted to do a banker lap on intermediates before pitting for slicks, only to find the rain returning, and Valtteri Bottas in front of him.
However, unlike Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, who also missed Q3, he wasn’t frustrated by the call to start the session with inters, agreeing that it was a team decision to do the banker lap.
“It was basically half a lap too late and the track position was really poor with the Alfa Romeo ahead,” he said when asked by Autosport about his session.
“And once the tyres were up to temperature on the slick, it started raining harder, so we decided to box. Then, when we went onto the inter, it was all a bit too late.
“That was always the plan – to do one lap and come back in for the slick tyre.”
Source: Autosport