Horner: Vettel will bounce back fast

Vettel looked on course for a podium finish in Melbourne, but got caught up in a collision with Robert Kubica near the end of the race.

His involvement in that incident has earned Vettel a 10-place grid penalty for this weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix.

Despite the disappointment, and the criticism thrown at Vettel's way from some quarters about getting caught up in the crash, Horner is sure his driver will not let what happened in Melbourne dent his confidence.

"He is a young guy, he drove fantastically well, and to me he had a racing accident with Kubica," explained Horner. "I think he can take a lot of confidence away that we have a car with a lot of potential.

"He is driving better than ever, and because of his confidence, albeit with a penalty going into this weekend, I expect to see a similar performance from him. We still have zero points on the board so we need to get on the scoreboard as quickly as possible."

Vettel had a meeting with the FIA on Thursday to explain why the governing body decided to hand him a 10-place penalty

Horner concedes that Vettel's grid penalty will make it difficult for the German to deliver a decent haul of points for Malaysia, although the prospects of showers in the race could throw up a surprise.

"As we have seen, overtaking a KERS powered car in a non KERS car will be difficult," said Horner. "But one of the big variables that can be a key factor this weekend is the weather. There is a late race start and when it rains here it is not just a light shower - it could have quite a sizeable impact on the race."