Nov.9 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel apologised after ignoring instructions to slow down en route to victory in India recently.

That is the claim of Red Bull team boss Christian Horner, who along with advisor Dr Helmut Marko reportedly chided the back-to-back world champion for pushing for the fastest race lap not only in Korea but also two weeks later in India.

On both occasions, the energy drink-owned team's engineers instructed Vettel, 24, to bring the car home rather than try to record the fastest lap of the race.

Former racer Horner, however, said he has some sympathy for the young German.

"You can't get out of your own skin," he told Die Welt newspaper. "I understand that. He's a thoroughbred racer and on a football field he would be like Wayne Rooney, always wanting to score another goal.

"He apologised to me for his little show, but Sebastian is reasonable. I don't think he was going to the limit, I think he just wanted to do something for his statistics."

Vettel, who is highly superstitious, always denies that his growing collection of statistics is important to him.

"I'm not so sure about that," smiled Horner, who denied that Vettel might therefore be labelled a "nerd".

"Nerds are tense but he has a sober intelligence and a killer instinct, even though he looks as innocent as a lamb," he continued. "He is a perfectionist and extremely ambitious.

"When he walks from the paddock to the parking lot and there's someone in front of him, he has to overtake!" laughed Horner.

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