Nico Rosberg has said that he is open to becoming friends once again with Lewis Hamilton.

The pair have admitted that they were once childhood "best friends", but when paired at Mercedes they shared an acrimonious relationship as title-duelling teammates.

Even after Rosberg's retirement, Hamilton recently answered "nothing" when asked what he thinks about the German today.

However, Rosberg says that he has no hard feelings about their difficult relationship in F1.

"I had to rely on succeeding with diligence, absolute dedication and zero compromises. It was the only way I could do it," he is quoted as saying by Bild newspaper.

"There are drivers in Formula 1 who were more talented than me. Maybe my teammate. He is one of the best drivers of all time and an incredible opponent."

As for their tetchy relationship, Rosberg said: "Five months have passed now. I don't know why [being friends again] should not be the case."

Hamilton is currently second to Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel in the driver rankings.