New Hamilton is primed to strike back

If history is anything to go by, the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve will either serve as balm to soothe Lewis Hamilton's troubled brow, or add to any angst he may still be harbouring following the strategy blunder that overshadowed his Monaco Grand Prix.

That a driver such as Hamilton has only a single Formula 1 victory to his name in nine attempts around the most famous streets in motor racing is anathema to the talent he possesses.

Even Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg, in another magnanimous gesture akin to the congratulations he offered Hamilton at the end of last season's title race, could empathise with the Briton in the immediate aftermath, given the galling nature of the reigning world champion's fall from an almost-certain win to a head-shaking third.

Mercedes, and its motorsport boss Toto Wolff in particular, then had to bear the brunt of some damning accusations from Hamilton fans around the world, incandescent as to how a team with all the technology its wealth can buy could so dramatically rip success from the grasp of their hero.

There was talk of algorithms, data, and GPS (or lack of it in this case), but where was the common sense, they cried.

Hamilton's anguish post-Monaco was clear to see © LAT

Whatever the whys and wherefores, it's all in the past now, leaving Hamilton to nurture a slender 10-point lead over Rosberg, compared to the 27 it could have been for a one-two finish spearheaded by the 30-year-old.

It is on such incidents that championships are won and lost, or at least given the still relatively early point in the season, they often go on to play a defining role.

The question now, ahead of Sunday's Canadian Grand Prix, is whether Hamilton has shaken off the gnawing sense of bitterness and frustration that will have undoubtedly followed such a defeat.

In the post-race press conference there was an obvious sense of dejection - he certainly could not pull his cap any lower down over his forehead or sink any lower into his seat, as if attempting to hide away from the questions he knew would inevitably come his way.

But when they did, he answered calmly, assuredly, without accusation, simply offering up a summation of the facts as he saw them at the time.

It would have been easy for Hamilton to have berated his team, to point an accusing finger, but not on this occasion.

It was certainly a different Hamilton to the one who let rip post-collision with Rosberg in last year's Belgian Grand Prix when he felt his main title rival had run into him deliberately.

Canada kicked off Hamilton's F1 win tally in 2007... © LAT

The Hamilton that emerged from the aftermath of that event went on to dig deep within himself, to draw on the positive energy he often speaks of, and produce a run of performances that blew Rosberg away.

What transpired in Monaco is exactly the kind of incident that would have deeply affected Hamilton in the past, that he would have mulled over for days, letting it darken his mood, and ultimately his form, going into the subsequent race.

If last season was anything to go by, Hamilton has turned a corner on the back of his 'feud' with Rosberg, refusing to be dragged down any more into a morass of self-pity and indecision by the actions of others.

Mercedes and Wolff, however, still chose to leave Hamilton in peace following the events in Monaco, to allow him his freedom and to provide him with the time needed to collect his thoughts.

From the outside looking in, and from the photographs that appeared on various news outlets around the world of Hamilton enjoying himself on a yacht outside Monte Carlo with numerous friends, whatever pain he was feeling had quickly dissipated.

It points to the fact that despite his rollercoaster record in Montreal, and the picturesque island track in the middle of the St Lawrence Seaway, he should come out firing on all cylinders.

He remains the star driver of this season, despite Rosberg chalking up back-to-back wins for the first time in his F1 career to keep Hamilton in his sights, and Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel on occasion offering some resistance.

...but it has also yielded some difficult races for the Briton © LAT

After the run of four successive poles, from which he secured three wins and a second place, the fifth race at Barcelona was one of those rare occasions for Hamilton where he failed to dial-in the car from minute one of first practice.

It was just an uncomfortable weekend all round, whereas Rosberg felt at home immediately and went from strength to strength, but even then Hamilton still claimed a damage-limitation runner-up place.

The reverse was true in Monaco as Hamilton 'owned' the track, taking pole with ease, and then when it mattered most in the race pulling away from Rosberg, until the Mercedes' pitwall's data disaster following the crash involving Toro Rosso's Max Verstappen and Romain Grosjean's Lotus.

And so to Canada where other than Michael Schumacher, Hamilton - alongside Nelson Piquet - is the most successful driver with three wins in 2007, '10 and '12.

Like Monaco, with its walls at close quarters, it can be unforgiving - as every challenging track should be in all honesty - yet for the most part Hamilton has its number.

His maiden F1 win eight years ago was as comfortable as they come, despite the numerous safety-car incidents that blighted the race, including a horrific crash involving Robert Kubica, then with BMW Sauber.

Hamilton's victory in 2010 was equally as comfortable, but devoid of the smashes and safety-car spells that had overshadowed events three years earlier.

Success in 2012 proved an F1 landmark as he was the seventh different winner that year from the opening seven races, making strategy and a late tyre stop work to his advantage to overhaul Vettel and Fernando Alonso, then with Red Bull and Ferrari respectively.

Hamilton missed out on 2014 victory with brake problem © LAT

But then there is the flipside of the Canadian Grand Prix for Hamilton, because in 2008 a lapse in concentration resulted in him crashing into the back of Kimi Raikkonen in his Ferrari in the pitlane, bringing an abrupt end to the race for both men.

Three years later and Hamilton's race was again over following a collision with another driver, on this occasion his then McLaren team-mate, Jenson Button.

That had followed another tumultuous race in Monaco for Hamilton in which he was penalised twice by the stewards, resulting in his now-infamous 'Maybe it's 'cos I'm black' faux pas.

And then last year he retired with brake failure, sparked by an initial loss of the MGU-K that also affected Rosberg.

It is that kind of turbulent run, with such highs and lows, that virtually mirror Hamilton as a character.

Last month's race in Monaco was undoubtedly another wretched moment for him, and now we will see what he is made of this season in another crucial Canadian GP.

Personally, I have no doubt the occasionally temperamental Hamilton of old is a driver of the past, and this weekend the cooler, more composed Hamilton we have come to witness these past nine months will again come to the fore.