Kamui Kobayashi believes he can achieve 'something special' in the British Grand Prix despite heading into the event with a five-place grid penalty.

The Japanese driver was punished for colliding with Ferrari's Felipe Massa in Valencia in last week's European Grand Prix.

The Sauber driver had to retire, having already been disrupted by an earlier clash with Williams driver Bruno Senna.

In 2010 Kobayashi achieved a then-career best sixth place finish at Silverstone and believes that he can produce a similar effort next Sunday.

"I'm really looking forward to this race, and my expectations are quite high," said Kobayashi.

"Silverstone is one of my favourite circuits. Our cars were always good in medium and high speed corners, but with the Sauber C31 we have also improved the performance in slow corners, which means we should have no problems with the new part of the track, which was introduced in 2010.

"Despite the fact I have to cope with a penalty, which will send me five places down the grid, I'm optimistic for this race. I believe we have the potential to achieve something special in England and I hope for a little more luck as well."

Kobayashi is 12th in the Drivers' Championships, 90 points behind Fernando Alonso.