Preview: The reason Lewis Hamilton faces an uphill battle against Vettel at the Canadian GP

The Canadian Grand Prix weekend hasn't even begun but already Lewis Hamilton knows he faces a difficult task to stop Sebastian Vettel claiming victory this Sunday.The Mercedes driver is the most successful driver of the current generation around the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve with six wins to his name, just one shy of the record held by Michael Schumacher.It was also the site of his first Formula 1 win in 2007 and he has dominated in each of the past three years, making him the modern day master of Montreal.But he will have to draw on all that experience and expertise with his Mercedes set to be at a disadvantage in several key areas against Vettel and his Ferrari over the next three days.The biggest being the tyres, as the same Hypersoft, Ultrasoft and Supersoft compounds used in Monaco will be available again in Canada.During the Monte Carlo weekend we saw the German manufacturer struggle more than most on the new pink-striped rubber and in the race, Hamilton, in particular, suffered from graining on both the softest two compounds.Mercedes also typically struggle to extract the same level of performance from softer tyres than their rivals and have been more conservative in their approach with just five sets of Hypersoft and five Ultrasoft, compared to eight and three sets respectively for both Ferrari and Red Bull.

Mercedes down on power?

The other factor playing against Hamilton is his engine with the news today that Mercedes will not be introducing a new, upgraded unit for this weekend over reliability fears.

That means the Briton, his teammate Valtteri Bottas as well as both customer teams, Force India and Williams, will be using the same engine that has done the first six races which means it has lost peak power and is potentially getting close to the end of their cycle, meaning failures are more likely.

Even if they do run smoothly for the whole weekend, Ferrari is bringing a new engine for one of the toughest races of the season and it should have more power too with a figure of around 10 horsepower mentioned.

All this means Vettel should be the man to beat in Montreal and a failure to capitalise on a weakened enemy would massively hurt his championship chances.

A tame Red Bull?

The Scuderia could also face a reduced threat from Red Bull as their car is likely to be less suited on the long straights, though will be strong in the many heavy braking zones.

But only one could potentially be in the fight as questions linger over Daniel Ricciardo and his engine after the problems in Monaco and whether an update from Renault would see him exceed his allocation for some elements for the season, meaning a grid penalty.

If that was to happen the pressure would be on Max Verstappen to put the multiple mistakes he has made in 2018 behind him and lead the charge for the Milton Keynes outfit, potentially trying to take advantage of any weakened rivals ahead.

Get ready for Montreal madness

What can usually be expected in Canada, however, is the unexpected on a circuit which is effectively a 200mph version of Monaco.

Walls line much of the track situated on an island in the St. Lawrence Seaway and none are more famous than the 'Wall of Champions' situated at the final chicane which has claimed victim to many top drivers over the years.

Schumacher, Vettel, Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve and Jenson Button are just some of the names to have left their mark over the years.

Montreal has also seen of the craziest races in recent history from Hamilton's first win in 2007 to Robert Kubica coming back from a massive crash that year to claim his first F1 win for BMW 12 months later.

Then there's the four-hour epic in 2011 as, in wet/dry conditions, Button recovered from last place at one stage early on to pass Vettel's Red Bull on the last lap for the win.

Opportunities await for midfield teams

It means then that opportunities await for all midfield teams and the unique demands could see a shake-up in the competitive order.

As the leading customers of Mercedes and Ferrari, Force India and Haas will be taking the fight to Renault, who have been the ever-consistent presence in the top 10 this season.

Last year, Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez kick-started their rivalry in Montreal as the lack of a Force India team order potentially cost Ocon a first F1 podium, nevertheless, their cars always feature near or at the top in the speed trap which is a good stat to lead at this track.

Despite a poor weekend in Monaco, Haas is bringing a significant upgrade for this weekend and with the updated Ferrari engine will likely be a threat once again.

An unhappy milestone?

The big loser could well be McLaren who have been the slowest in a straight line throughout this year and are unlikely to make up that deficit in other areas.

That means Fernando Alonso could be set for a disappointing 300th F1 Grand Prix weekend though of course, the Spaniard can never be ruled out.

Toro Rosso's performance will also be engine based despite a good showing on a similar track in Bahrain back in April, but with Honda bringing upgrades reportedly worth nearly 30 more horsepower, if reliable it could be a big step forward.

Sauber and Williams will continue to linger towards the back but have shown they can get drivers on the fringes of the top 10 when running well.

And for Lance Stroll, this marks his second trip to his hometown as an F1 driver and he'll have good memories having scored his first points there 12 months ago.

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