The T-Sport driver's progress was aided by a first corner shunt that eliminated three cars and delayed half a dozen more.
Sebastian Hohenthal clouted the back of Atte Mustonen under braking for the first chicane and Max Chilton was also eliminated as several cars took to the grass and escape road in avoidance.
Perez was up to seventh by the end of the second lap and third by the end of the fifth. He then passed early leaders Sam Abay and Jaime Alguersuari in quick succession and controlled the remainder of the race.
He was briefly put under pressure by Esteban Guerrieri, but it started to rain with five laps to go and Perez edged clear as Guerrieri fell back into the battle behind him.
"It was a fantastic, the best race I've ever done," said Perez. "I did everything right. I knew I had the speed to win but it was important to be intelligent and patient, and it went perfectly."
Guerrieri soon found himself in the middle of the fight between Carlin Motorsport team-mates Brendon Hartley and Alguersuari, who were trading places on the long drags. Hartley erred on the side of caution when it became a three-way scrap, and decided to sit back and watch the other two fight it out as the track got more slippery.
The decision paid off as Alguersuari and Guerrieri collided at the first Lesmo, and the way was clear for Hartley to complete his climb from 13th to second.
"I've been too aggressive a few times this season and it hasn't worked out too well," said Hartley. "I was patient, especially when it started raining, because anything can happen at Monza.
"They were fighting closely and I could see what was going to happen. I could never have expected to be on the podium from 13th but it just shows what's possible if you have the speed and drive a sensible race."
Oliver Turvey also benefited and was next up in third, from ninth on the grid, ahead of a frantic battle between Walter Grubmuller, John Martin, Abay, and Marcus Ericsson.
Alguersuari survived the clash with Guerrieri to finish eighth, but was given a 25-second penalty that dropped him out of the points.
Pos Driver Team Car Time 1. Sergio Perez T-Sport D/H 31:17.244 2. Brendon Hartley Carlin D/M +4.238 3. Oliver Turvey Carlin D/M +6.220 4. Walter Grubmuller Hitech D/M +6.319 5. John Martin Double R D/M +6.454 6. Sam Abay Carlin D/M +7.427 7. Marcus Ericsson Fortec D/M +7.454 8. Matteo Chinosi Ombra (I) D/H +18.460 9. Phillip Major Fortec D/M +27.091 10. Hywel Lloyd CF (N) D/H +33.637 11. Stefan Wilson Fluid (N) D/H +34.352 12. Jaime Alguersuari Carlin D/M +12.808 13. Viktor Jensen Nexa D/H +39.500 14. Federico Leo Ombra (I) D/H +39.868 15. Craig Reiff Nexa (N) D/H +49.004 16. Esteban Guerrieri Ultimate M/M +2 Laps Not classified Driver Team Car Laps Ricardo Teixeira Ultimate M/M DSQ Andy Meyrick Carlin (N) D/H 6 laps Kristjan Einar Carlin (N) D/H 5 laps Salman Al-Khalifa T-Sport (N) D/H 3 laps Jay Bridger Fluid (N) D/H 2 laps Michael Devaney Ultimate M/M 1 lap Nick Tandy JTR M/M 1 lap Atte Mustonen Double R D/M 1 lap Max Chilton Hitech D/M 1 lap Sebastian Hohenthal Fortec D/M 0 laps Henry Arundel Double R D/M 0 laps Steven Guerrero T-Sport (N) D/H 0 laps Fastest lap Guerrieri, 1:47.378 on lap 7 (D/M = Dallara Mercedes, D/H = Dallara Mugen-Honda, M/M = Mygale Mercedes)
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