Lewis Hamilton has claimed his second successive Chinese Grand Prix, finishing ahead of Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg in a time of 1:39:42 this morning.

The race ended behind the safety car after Max Verstappen's late retirement, with Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel finishing in third and colleague Kimi Raikkonen down in fourth.

Raikkonen, who started sixth on the grid, got off to a flying start, overtaking the Williams duo of Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas on the first lap.

A poor start saw Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo drop from seventh to 16th, before eventually moving back up the pack.

Force India's Nico Hulkenberg was the first driver forced to retire on lap 10, before engine trouble for Daniil Kvyat saw the Red Bull driver pull out.

Victory for Hamilton rarely looked under threat, despite being told on the team radio to increase his pace in the middle sector to save Rosberg's tyres behind him.

Meanwhile, Jenson Button and Pastor Maldonado clashed at the end of the pit straight, causing the latter to retire, with the incident set to be investigated after the race.

With three laps to go, Max Verstappen, who had moved up to eighth, was forced to stop on the pit straight, meaning the safety car was deployed until the end as Hamilton crossed the line in first.

It was only the sixth time in history a F1 race has finished behind the safety car.

Full standings:

1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
2. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes)
3. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)
4. Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
5. Felipe Massa (Williams)
6. Valterri Bottas (Williams)
7. Romain Grosjean (Lotus)
8. Felipe Nasr (Sauber)
9. Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull)
10. Marcus Ericsson (Sauber)
11. Sergio Perez (Force India)
12. Fernando Alonso (McLaren)
13. Jenson Button (McLaren)
14. Carlos Sainz (Toro Rosso)
15. Will Stevens (Manor Marussia)
16. Roberto Mehri (Manor Marussia)
DNF Pastor Maldonado (Lotus)
DNF Daniil Kvyat (Red Bull)
DNF Nico Hulkenberg (Force India)
DNF Max Verstappen (Toro Rosso)