Hamilton: Verstappen didn't want 'to give way today'

Lewis Hamilton laid the blame of his collision with Max Verstappen in the Italian Grand Prix on the Red Bull driver, insisting his rival just didn't "want to give way".

As the race reached its halfway point, Hamilton and Verstappen were battling for position, with the Dutchman catching the Mercedes on the run down to the first chicane, with Hamilton having just exited the pits.

The seven-time world champion entered the corner ahead but with Verstappen running almost alongside. When he turned into the final part of the chicane contact ensued, with both cars sliding off into the gravel, the Red Bull bouncing atop the Mercedes.

Upon his return on foot to his garage, Verstappen told his crews that Hamilton had not given him enough space mid-way through the corner. But Hamilton disagreed with his opponent's view.

• Read also: Verstappen and Hamilton collide at Monza!

"I was racing as hard as I could, finally got past Lando [Norris]," Hamilton said on Sky F1 after the race.

"I was in the lead, or time wise it told me I was in the lead, so they pitted me. Pitstop was obviously slow, lost a couple of seconds, I think a second and a bit, whatever it is.

"[I] came out, I saw that Daniel [Ricciardo] came past, Max was coming, I made sure I left a car's width on the outside for him.

"I went into Turn 1, I was ahead, and I was ahead going into Turn 2. Then all of a sudden, he was on top of me."

The incident was the second contentious tussle in the race between the two drivers, with Hamilton running wide over the kerbs on the opening lap at the Roggia chicane as Verstappen held his line.

Hamilton said the contact at the first chicane that led to the pair's elimination was an almost identical scenario, save for the fact that the Mercedes driver had backed off.

"I was in exactly the same position, but I gave way, and that's racing," Hamilton said.

"He didn't want to give way today. He knew that when he was going into 2 what was going to happen. He knew he was going over the kerbs. But he still did it.

"We'll speak to the stewards and see. But I don't really know what else to say."

The incident was set to be investigated by the Italian Grand Prix stewards, with a decision expected to be rendered late in the afternoon.

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter