Always a happy hunting ground for Lewis Hamilton, the Canadian Grand Prix was once again conquered by the British driver but his skill was rewarded to a much greater extent than merely claiming his sixth win at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. While Hamilton led from pole to flag in a race in which he never relinquished control and followed the Mercedes team’s plan to perfection, his Formula One world championship rival Sebastian Vettel endured a trying afternoon from which he did well to manage a strong comeback. But it remained a major blow, the German’s fourth-place finish cutting his 25-point advantage over Hamilton to 12.

Hamilton led a Mercedes one-two, their first of the season, his team-mate Valtteri Bottas finishing second with the Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo third. Ferrari had been stymied almost from the start. Vettel suffered damage on the opening lap and was forced to play catch-up while his team-mate, Kimi Raikkonen, lost places off the grid and had to adopt an alternate strategy, managing to finish only seventh.

Hamilton, who gained his debut F1 win here in 2007, relished the success. “You always need weekends like this,” he said. “There was a lot of time to think when I was out front, reliving the memories of 2007, really being able to absorb the moment and enjoy driving the car. It was a challenge but it was like other races I have had here, well managed from the front. I love driving this track.”

Hamilton had indeed been untouchable in front. He was in a class of his own in qualifying and a race of his own on Sunday. It continues the remarkably successful run that began with his first victory here and puts him one behind Michael Schumacher’s record of seven wins. Having taken the chequered flag in China and Spain already he is now honours even with Vettel – they have three wins apiece – and crucially within touching distance of the German in the title tussle, while his mastery of this demanding track on the Île Notre-Dame is simply beyond doubt. The deft touch and steely nerve that Montreal demands were once again to the fore and, although he was not under pressure, he did not put a foot wrong. “There was no trouble today,” he said. “It was a beautiful Sunday drive.”

With the order upset Force India took advantage and, aided by their upgraded Mercedes power unit, Sergio Pérez and Esteban Ocon were in the mix throughout. They drove superbly to finish fifth and sixth but the team faced a difficult debrief afterwards for not allowing Ocon, quicker than his team-mate in the latter stages, through, thereby assisting Vettel’s attempt to catch and pass them both.

Vettel had to pursue his own singular race and did so with admirable determination. The German had jumped Hamilton at the start of this race in 2016 but there was no repeat performance. Instead he was caught by the Red Bull of Max Verstappen.

Verstappen had an electric start and shot up the outside into turn one, while Vettel dropped two spots into fourth but he had not only lost places. The Dutch driver clipped Vettel’s right front wing and he subsequently also suffered from a damaged floor. It changed the complexion of Vettel’s afternoon immediately. A stop for a new wing followed, forcing him into a two-stop strategy, while Hamilton could stick to his plan, staying out long on the quicker ultra soft rubber and pitting only once, the optimum for the race, but Vettel was determined to limit the damage.

After his final stop he came out in seventh and a chase to the finish ensued. Raikkonen was first to fall. The Finn, suffering from brake issues, went straight on at the final chicane and Vettel passed him for sixth place on lap 61. On a charge he passed Ocon in a superb move into turn one on lap 66 to go fifth and then went after Pérez. This was thrilling stuff at the end and it paid off. Vettel pulled off another remarkable move through the final chicane on lap 69 to finish fourth – a result that looked unthinkable after the opening lap.

He was, nevertheless, disappointed but accepted the clash at the start had been a racing incident. “The beginning of the race did not go our way but I still believed we could fight back,” he said. “Three cars into turn one does not work. He [Verstappen] ran over my front wing. You don’t do that on purpose because of the chance of a puncture.”

Lance Stroll, the Canadian rookie, scored his first points in Formula One at his home grand prix, with what was by far his best drive of the season, finishing in ninth for Williams.

Renault’s Nico Hülkenberg came in eighth and the Haas of Romain Grosjean 10th while McLaren took another step towards a divorce from Honda after Fernando Alonso’s engine gave out on the penultimate lap.

But the day had belonged to Hamilton as it has so often in Montreal. Niki Lauda, the Mercedes non-executive chairman, acknowledged they had got everything right. “The whole team is back,” he said. “This race weekend was perfect.”

He was understandably pleased because it was enough for Mercedes to retake the lead in the constructors’ championship from Ferrari by eight points. The team’s executive director, Toto Wolff, described it as an afternoon that was a “cruise” and so it had been for Hamilton. But he executed the race perfectly and leaves Canada not only with a winning feeling but right back in the title fight.