Former Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali is expecting the Maranello team to bounce back in Bahrain.
"Yes, that was a difficult weekend for them," the Italian is quoted by Speed Week, after Ferrari’s winter of promise ended with the team being outpaced by Mercedes and Red Bull-Honda in Melbourne.
"Ferrari could not show a normal level of performance," said Domenicali, "but let us not forget that Melbourne is a special place.
"That’s why, for me, Bahrain is the more reliable gauge for me."
Domenicali, who was succeeded at Ferrari by Marco Mattiacci, Maurizio Arrivabene and now Mattia Binotto, urged the legendary team against panicking.
"In Australia, the car was too slow, and I don’t know if it was the tyres or the chassis or the engine," he said.
"If I look at the speed and the laptimes, it is clear that something did not go normally there. But they should not overreact now.
"We will find out in Bahrain what the real situation is," Domenicali added.