Haug hails Schumacher's performance

That is the view of Mercedes-Benz motorsport boss Norbert Haug, who believes that Schumacher's fiery drive in Montreal - where he just missed out on a podium after running as high as second at one point - was the return of the seven-time champion to his best.

"This is what happens in sport - you can turns thing around quickly," Haug told AUTOSPORT in reference to the praise Schumacher got in Canada just a few weeks after critics slated his driving in Turkey.

"Ultimately you need results, and the one here was a very respectable one. We did it with Ralf [Schumacher] in DTM too - where he got criticism but now he is delivering good results.

"Our team is composed, it stays together and everyone is helping each other. This was Michael at his best. It shows that he can do it, and that if we give him the right car he will deliver."

Schumacher's improved form this year, and a recent uplift in performance compared to team-mate Nico Rosberg, has prompted speculation that the German could extend his F1 contract beyond the end of 2013.

However, speaking in Canada, Schumacher said that recent comments where he suggested that achieving success would take longer than three years, which was interpreted as him hinting that he planned to extend his stay in F1, did not have such hidden meaning.

"I have heard the speculation - and how it was interpreted into my comments," he explained. "But that wasn't the meaning of my comments - let me put it that way.

"We have said that I have a three-year deal, and at the right moment in time we will talk about what will happen in the future."