Lewis Hamilton claims his relationship with Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg is "really good at the moment", following a difficult period between the two which stretches back to 2014.
The pair have clashed on several occasions during their time as team-mates, but things have begun to simmer down to the point that it's surprised Hamilton just how close they've become, something he believes is attributed to a greater level of respect and maturity.
"It’s actually really good with Nico at the moment," Hamilton said in a Mail on Sunday interview. ‘Really, really good. Surprisingly.
“I would definitely not have expected it to be where it is. I guess it is probably with age.
"He’s a family man. He’s got a kid. He has probably grown in that process and I have grown and come of age. The respect that we have always talked about is bigger than it has ever been."
The pair recently clashed in Spain, an incident which took them both out of the race, but the fallout that followed was almost non-existant compared to previous clashes, which have often resulted in the pair slagging one another off to the media.
Hamilton says they're now able to discuss matters such as that crash, like adults, behind closed doors.
"Now we generally just discuss things," he explained. "Whether we’re unhappy about something or not, we discuss it face to face. If I have a problem, I knock on his door and ask if I can speak to him privately. We never address it publicly or in front of the team. So far, at least.
"The other day, I was swimming in my pool — the building we live in in Monaco, there is a shared communal pool — and I guess he saw me from his apartment and came down and sat on the diving board and when I finished a few laps, we sat and talked for 20 minutes or half an hour. In a relaxed state.
"We are going to have our ups and downs and there are going to be times where we hate each other and when we like each other, but ultimately, when we have all retired and got kids and stuff, the respect will always be there."
