F1 world champion slams Hamilton and Leclerc for 'destroying' Ferrari's chances

1997 F1 champion Jacques Villeneuve has accused Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton of destroying Ferrari's race during the Chinese Grand Prix.

Ferrari finished third and fourth for the second consecutive grand prix of the season in Shanghai, with the dominant Mercedes still proving to be too quick for the Scuderia.

It was Antonelli who took the first F1 win of his career ahead of George Russell, with Hamilton securing the first podium of his Ferrari career after an intense battle with Leclerc.

The wheel-to-wheel racing between the scarlet Ferraris was the highlight of both of the weekend's races, with Leclerc getting the better of Hamilton in Saturday's sprint.

However, not everyone was impressed with the Scuderia duo, with Villeneuve accusing the pair of sabotaging the team's chances at victory following the chequered flag.

"Well, it was fair because he finished third, so and he managed to beat his teammate, so yes, it turned out okay, but it was a little bit extreme," he said on Sky Sports.

"It destroyed Ferrari’s race, they were running second and third."

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc battling in China (credit: getty)

The 1997 world champion believed that the battle ruined both of their tyres, and allowed Antonelli to cruise off into the distance.

“He did it on the braking, quite late, and then they were fighting so hard, destroying their tyres, and in those two laps they lost five seconds to Antonelli," he continued.

However, fellow Sky Sports F1 pundit Jamie Chadwick disagreed with the Canadian, claiming the Mercedes would have been too quick regardless.

“I don’t think Mercedes were their battle today though, and I quite like the fact they’re going at it, to be honest,” Chadwick said.

“I also liked the fact that they both seemed to be quite happy. Charles as well is like, ‘I’m actually having a bit of fun.’”

Vasseur trusts Hamilton and Leclerc to battle

The Ferraris swapped places multiple times during the race, with Leclerc initially overtaking Hamilton before the Brit retook the podium place after multiple laps battling the Monegasque.

Speaking after the race, team principal Fred Vasseur confirmed that he trusts both drivers to race fairly, and insisted team orders would have been 'unfair'.

“I trust them, and for sure, it is always tricky because it is difficult to stop them, and I don’t want to ask them to freeze the positions, and I think it would be unfair," he told Sky Sports.

"They are professional, and it is good for the team, it is good for F1, and I would prefer it stays like this.”