Ferrari threw everything at stopping the dominance of its Milton Keynes rivals, with a package specifically for Monza bedecked in a special livery to celebrate its Le Mans 24 Hours success.
Carlos Sainz duly took his first pole position of the year to ensure the scarlet cars led from the front on Sunday, but had to settle for third behind the Red Bulls of Verstappen and Sergio Perez after surviving huge pressure from his team-mate Charles Leclerc.
