Human error was behind Max Verstappen's delayed pit-stop in the Italian Grand Prix, RacingNews365.com understands. Verstappen ran second to eventual winner Daniel Ricciardo in the early stages of Sunday's race at Monza but lost more than 10 seconds when he pitted for fresh tyres on Lap 23, dropping him down to ninth position. When Lewis Hamilton exited the pits two laps later after his own stop, which was also slightly delayed, the title rivals unexpectedly met each other on the entry to the first chicane and clashed. Both drivers were eliminated from the race after the Red Bull pitched into the air and came crashing down on the Mercedes. Television replays showed mechanics struggling to fit the front-right tyre during Verstappen's pit-stop, with Red Bull team boss Christian Horner admitting post-race that "we need to fully understand it". "Unfortunately, that got us into a situation where we shouldn't have been anywhere around Lewis," added Horner. It has now been determined that the delayed stop was caused by human error, as opposed to any problems with equipment. Despite the incident, Verstappen left Monza with a slightly extended, five-point advantage over Hamilton in the standings, having finished second in the Sprint Qualifying race. Verstappen has, however, picked up a three-place grid penalty for the Russian GP, after stewards deemed that he was predominantly to blame for the clash with Hamilton.
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