NICO ROSBERG COLUMN: I’ve had four weeks off to refresh my batteries (and hunt down the world’s best pizza)... but now I am in full-on attack mode to win the title 

• It's difficult to take your mind of F1, but I'm raring to go for rest of the year
• I've spent time in Italy, the south of France and Monaco since the last race
• Lewis Hamilton is 11 points adrift, but with nine grands prix left I will still be aiming to win races... it's too early to think about anything else!
• Reliability is a concern for us... we're doing all we can to get it 100% right

By Nico Rosberg

Published: 07:20 EST, 21 August 2014 | Updated: 03:06 EST, 22 August 2014

It’s been almost four weeks since the last race in Hungary and during the summer break I have been able to reflect on the season so far and look ahead to the remainder of this year and even the 2015 campaign.

I had a review with the team immediately after the last race. We went through the grand prix, where I finished fourth after starting from pole position, and looked to see how we can improve in the future.

Given what had happened in Hungary, there was talk about team instructions, and it was something that we needed to discuss and go through. 

VIDEO Scroll down to watch Who is 16 year old F1 driver Max Verstappen? 

On track: Nico Rosberg finished fourth at last month's Hungarian Grand Prix after starting from pole position 

We need to review what happens as the season goes on and revise our plans, too. So, we have gone through it, and we now know what we are going to do for the remainder of the year. It was important to do that.

I then went to the factory to discuss next year’s car as more and more of the team’s focus is shifting towards what we’ll be doing in 2015. This is normal because you need to get a head-start on that. 

All the engineers were together, so they wanted to ask me questions, and get my opinion and insight for next season’s design.

Away from Formula One, I had a really good time off. I was on a boat in Capri near Napoli in Italy for a week with my best friends. 

We did something called ‘pizza hopping’ which you can see on my Facebook account. Instead of bar hopping we tried out a number of different pizzas instead, because in Napoli they have some of the best in the world.

Italian job: I spent part of my summer break 'pizza hopping' in a bid to track down the world's tastiest pizzas 

Friends reunited: It was great to spend time with my pals; I'm ready and refreshed for the remainder of the year

Our mission was to find the world’s best pizza, so we tried out a host of different restaurants. It was a lot of fun, and we managed to find the best one at a restaurant called Pizzeria Da Michele. 

If you are ever in the area you must check it out. It was a crazy, crazy place; there were so many people at this tiny, random restaurant which is 140 years old. It is a phenomenon, and most importantly, the taste was amazing.

I then spent a week in the south of France with my wife Vivian, cruising around, driving a Harley Davidson together which was really good. I managed to get in some training, too.

I also had my cousin’s baptism to attend which was awesome. I am now a Godfather and it’s a very nice feeling as it is the first time, so that was great. Other than that I spent some time at home in Monaco getting ready for the next couple of races in Hungary and then after that the Italian Grand Prix.

It’s difficult to take your mind off racing during the summer break, but I managed to completely relax. I definitely used my time off to refresh, but now I am ready to be in full-on attack mode for the remainder of the season.

Let me take a selfie: The Pizzeria Da Michele was a crazy place with over 140 years of history to boast 

Taking it to the Max  

Earlier this week, Max Verstappen was announced as a Toro Rosso driver for next season. I don’t really know much about him or what he done up to now in his career. 

Of course he is very young but we’ll have to wait and see how it goes. He will be only 17 for the first race in Australia, but I am not concerned, and I don’t think any of the other drivers will be, although I am sure it is a topic that we will discuss.

Rookie: Max Verstappen will make his Formula One debut next year at the tender age of just 17-years-old 

Who is 16 year old F1 driver Max Verstappen?

Dan's the man  

Daniel Ricciardo won his second race of the season in Hungary last time out and he is definitely among a few drivers who have stood out this season. He is doing a good job and it is great to see how he is taking on his four-time world champion team-mate Sebastian Vettel.

Of course it is surprising just how well he is doing because it was difficult to foresee a driver with limited experience taking on and sometimes beating his more established team-mate and performing in such an impressive way. 

I still expect he and Vettel at Red Bull and Williams to be our strongest rivals for the rest of the year.

All smiles: Daniel Ricciardo has been very impressive since he moved to Red Bull from Toro Rosso 

Reliability is a weakness  

I am 11 points clear of Lewis Hamilton in the drivers’ championship, but with nine races left I will still be attacking and I am out to win races as it is too early to think about just finishing.

We arrive at the Belgian Grand Prix and Spa-Francorchamps for round 12 of the championship. Every track has suited our car this season and I don’t expect this weekend to be any different.

We have got a great Mercedes-Benz engine and our car also is also awesome in medium-to-high-speed corners so it should definitely suit us. 

Spa is a great track and one of the best on the calendar and with the car I have I am sure it is going to be a great weekend.

Reliability however, is a weakness for us at the moment and it is one of the things that we are focussed on because it needs to be at 100 per cent. 

We are working on it, and we will get there, but there is still a little bit of a way to go before we’ll be totally happy.

The team however, can’t work any harder because they are already giving it their all; to do any more than that would be totally impossible.

Sitting pretty: Rosberg holds an 11-point lead over Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton with nine races left 

VIDEO Review of the Hungarian Grand Prix 

Nico Rosberg's fee for his column will be donated to the Grand Prix Mechanics’ Charitable Trust, which is dedicated to providing help to former and current Formula One mechanics and their families, putting F1 mechanics throughout the world in touch with each other and raising funds to help in times of need.

You can follow Rosberg on Twitter @nico_rosberg and MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS @MercedesAMGF1

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