Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff sharply criticised those who suggest his team is favouring one of its drivers over the other.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli has out-scored George Russell by 320 points to 236 so far this season. Russell’s fading championship hopes suffered a fresh blow in Malaysia when he suffered an engine failure. He was running behind his team mate at the time.

Both drivers have retired from races due to technical problems this year, though Russell has suffered more. He will start this weekend’s grand prix from the back of the grid as Mercedes had to replace his power unit again due to his retirement in Malaysia.

Wolff made it clear he has no time for those who claim the team has prioritised Antonelli. “Really [I have] zero understanding and respect for people who come up with these things,” Wolff remarked. “Rather than watching Formula 1, they should do Teletubbies or some Mickey Mouse.”

“They’re brainless, whoever thinks that,” he said.

“I mean, it’s completely nonsensical. We’ve had it in the past with Lewis [Hamilton] fans. I mean, literally, I don’t know what’s going on. Do they think I have a button that says, ‘George engine failure now’, or disadvantaging one driver against the other when we are fighting for a constructors’ championship, when we have always had the mindset of providing everybody equal material?”

He suggested the claims largely come from people posting anonymously online. “I guess this is maybe where social media goes today,” he said. “People hide behind their screens and then they lash out.

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“There’s a lot of polarisation going on, and sometimes I read what people write, I find it hilarious. These people really contribute to my own entertainment when they are abusing the team or myself. I’m Satan, I’ve heard. So, yeah, overall it’s funny.”

Neither of Mercedes’ drivers believe there is favouritism within the team, Wolff emphasised.

“We have had Kimi since he was 11. He is an integral part of the team. It is very nice to see him grow, be in a position now that he is fighting for a championship at such a young age, the talent he has.

“Then on the other side, George, who has been with us since he was 17, someone that I feel a lot of, how can I say, emotions for and compassion. We are very close.

“We are spending time with Carmen and Susie off the track with each other. If people would see that we’re travelling together, we’re having coffee in the same coffee shop, we’re going to the gym, that’s why it’s pretty annoying to have some lunatics that have no understanding really about how relationships work coming up with these kinds of accusations. So, I don’t pay any attention to this.

“Most important is that George knows how the team is and Kimi knows, and we will always try to give them equal opportunity.”

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The team is in an unusual situation this weekend as only one driver, Antonelli, is running their latest upgrade while Russell has reverted to the old car specification.

“When it comes to the upgrade, it’s a good example,” said Wolff. “We don’t know which one is going to be quicker.

“So you take a decision and say, ‘Let’s try to find out.’ And there is no great political thinking behind it.

“When it comes to racing, like [McLaren’s] ‘Papaya Rules’, we have always been very clear that we’re not standing in each other’s way. We don’t like the yo-yo racing that could cost a position if someone is close to us, and the quicker car, if it’s behind, is always going to have an advantage. And that could go either direction, it doesn’t matter.

“Even if it is now that it’s more realistic for Kimi to win a championship in sheer mathematical probability, we would still give George the same opportunities. And that’s important. That’s the ethos and the integrity on which the team has operated since 2013, since I came, and we are going to stick to that. And then people can think what they want.”

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