Hamilton: I still have all the respect for Nico

Lewis Hamilton believes that the way he and his Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg have handled the aftermath of their collision at the Spanish Grand Prix, indicates that the pair have matured and admits he has big respect for his rival - the pair having raced each other since their karting days.

Speaking ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix weekend, Hamilton told media, "I think it's shown the growth within Nico and I, we stood and spoke to each other today," he said ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix. "In the past there would have been some kind of tension of some sort but it was just pure respect."

"I told him that I still have all the respect for him and he said the same, so let's keep racing, it doesn't change the way we approach our racing, maybe we're just getting old! We're good at our jobs and we know it," added the F1 world champion.

"It was a racing incident and there will be many close racing incidents like that. There will be many racing incidents throughout our racing career together - particularly when you are fighting that close."

"I'm not changing my approach, Nico's not changing his, so we are going to just keep going. Of course, we are conscious we don't want to have the same result as we did in the last one. But these things you learn from."

"All you need to know is that the respect is still there," he repeated.

Hamilton has yet to win a race this season and lags behind Rosberg in the championship standings by 43 points.

"It's much easier leading the championship, it's easier as you know you've got an advantage. You have that comfort buffer, I have zero comfort buffer now. Don't focus on the what ifs, just focus on the now and move forwards," added the Briton.

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