Sebastian Vettel has put his Malaysian GP victory down to cool heads at Red Bull, who refused to panic after throwing away back-to-back wins.

Vettel was robbed of the wins in both Bahrain and Australia due to continued to reliability issues with his Red Bull racer.

However, the German and his team made amends on Sunday when they coasted to the top of the podium, claiming a dominant result as Mark Webber finished in second place.

And they secured the 1-2 in intense heat and humidity - and perhaps in one of the toughest grands prix for the cars - something eight of their rivals failed to do.

"Thanks to the team, it was crucial not to panic," said Vettel. "It's a long season but sitting here on a Sunday afternoon in first position is a good feeling.

"Mark finishing second is a big plus for the team, lots and lots of points. I'm very very happy."

As for his grand prix, Vettel led from lap one when he was able to take advantage of a small gap left open by team-mate and pole sitter Webber.

However, it was by no means a cruise to the finish line due to the oppressive heat at the Sepang circuit.

"I took the chance I had in to Turn 1, it was quite late. Mark had a better exit but it's very slippery and we both tried to push. We both have respect for each other," he said.

"After that it was a question about getting away from our competitors. Mark and I had the same pace although he was a bit quicker in the first stint.

"The second stint was extremely long and I didn't stop sweating but fortunately i didn't run out drinks.

"I was hoping for rain to cool down. But it stayed dry all the time, had a magnificent car just had to watch the tyres and pace myself.

"At the end of the day a very good result for us, especially for myself after those two races."