Former Renault boss Flavio Briatore has criticised Ferrari’s decision to hand Kimi Raikkonen a new contract and feels the Finn is holding them back.

The Italian outfit have been much improved throughout 2017 after quickly getting to grips with the new regulations during pre-season testing.

Ferrari made an extremely positive start to the regular season with Sebastian Vettel, who is priced at 3.25 to win the Mexico GP, claiming victories in three of the opening six events, while he finished second in the other three.

However, the German has not been backed up by a strong partner with Raikkonen struggling to claim a podium finish on a consistent basis.

The Finn is yet to pick up a chequered flag so far this term and has only finished in the top three on five occasions.

The 2007 world champion sits fifth in the Drivers’ Championship, while Mercedes, who have already wrapped up the Constructors’ Championship, have Lewis Hamilton at the top of the standings and Valtteri Bottas sitting in third.

Raikkonen signed a new contract with Ferrari in August, which will keep him with the team in 2018, and Briatore believes it could prevent them from challenging strongly again.

Briatore said: “Certainly it is very difficult to win the constructors’ title with Raikkonen.

“To win, you must have two drivers who are competitive and then you identify who should win the drivers’ championship.”