Bernie Ecclestone still thinks Ferrari should have kept Kimi Raikkonen in 2019.

A friend of Sebastian Vettel's, former F1 supremo Ecclestone thinks Finn Raikkonen was a better number 2 driver than Charles Leclerc is.

"I thought Ferrari made a mistake by releasing Kimi," he told France's Auto Hebdo.

"He was a good teammate and didn't create any problems. He knew what he had to do.

"If he was asked to let Sebastian pass, he would. If he was asked to slow down a bit to stop an opponent and help the team, he would.

"I'm not sure Charles is ready for that job," Ecclestone added.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff agrees with Ecclestone that while Leclerc is clearly good, he has created a problem for Ferrari this year.

"Leclerc is a future world champion, he could even do it this year," he told Auto Bild.

"Ferrari has a moral problem now," added Wolff.

"On the other hand they have to support their four time champion, but on the other they cannot slow down their super talent, especially as Charles has the emotion on his side after his back luck in Bahrain.

"It may well be that Ferrari want to give back his stolen victory. I would think about it," he said.

Former F1 driver David Coulthard, meanwhile, tips Vettel to fight back this weekend in China.

"It's normal for the younger generation to challenge the old guard, but I don't think Seb is necessarily the old guard," he said. "He didn't get the car right in Bahrain.

"Nothing is decided yet."