On his debut at the 2007 Australian Grand Prix, he qualified fourth and finished third in the race, thus becoming the fourteenth driver to finish on the podium on his GP début (excluding those in the first ever World Championship round). In Bahrain, Hamilton got his first front-row start, qualifying and finishing second behind Felipe Massa.

Hamilton again finished second behind Massa in the Spanish Grand Prix, to take the lead in the drivers championship. With that achievement, Hamilton surpassed Bruce McLaren to become the youngest driver to ever lead the world championship.

Controversy surrounded Hamilton's finishing position in Monaco. After comments made by Hamilton post-race which suggested he had been forced into a supporting role, the FIA initiated an inquiry to determine whether McLaren had broken rules by enforcing team orders. McLaren denied favouring double world champion Fernando Alonso, and the FIA subsequently vindicated the team, stating that: "McLaren were able to pursue an optimum team strategy because they had a substantial advantage over all other cars. They did nothing which could be described as interfering with the race result."