Lewis Hamilton restored the normal service in Shanghai, as he cruised to victory two weeks after Sebastian Vettel had won for Ferrari in the Malaysian Grand Prix.

The four-time champion finished in third place this time, although he ran close to the Mercedes for a big part of the race.

Raikkonen, who finished fourth behind Vettel, believes Ferrari's current rate of progress means the Maranello team could be fighting for victory regularly soon.

"I don't see a reason why not. We have made big gains and we will make big gains during this year," said Raikkonen.

"Obviously everybody will improve so it depends what the rest are doing, so it definitely shows we are going in the right way and doing the right things.

"It is just being patient, we need time, we cannot make miracles overnight.

"Sebastian showed we can win, but it depends, one circuit is better for one team and the next could be a different story. We need to be up there when something happens to them, or the conditions change.

"I really feel we will get there to regularly beat them."

"We know what we are doing"

Raikkonen said losing out to Mercedes today was not a big drama seeing Ferrari's form at the end of last year.

"It's not ideal for the team to be beaten by Mercedes, but I think we have to be realistic where we are now compared to where we started last year, so we know what we are doing and if we keep working in the same way, then I am sure we will get there," he said.

"Some races might be a bit closer, but after yesterday's mistake it was more or less maximum.

"It's good for the team but we are not happy to be third and fourth, and we want to really push for the wins, but we have to be happy as a team.

"We will keep pushing in the same direction as we have done so far push to the limits."