Lando Norris Edges Out Oscar Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice Session
The British driver has outscored Oscar Piastri at all of the previous five grands prix.
Lando Norris narrowly beat fellow driver and championship contender Oscar Piastri for the quickest lap in the dying seconds of the practice session at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Norris, who took the title advantage from his teammate by one point after winning in the Mexican Grand Prix a fortnight back, topped the Melbourne-born driver by a mere 0.023s.
Earlier in the session, Piastri had been the leading McLaren throughout the hour before sprint qualifying due at the evening session.
Max Verstappen, the only other driver in realistic title contention, trailing with a 36-point deficit behind Norris, finished in 17th place as his Red Bull team ran a unique setup.
Verstappen's team-mate Yuki Tsunoda was the sole competitor to go off, though minor, when he rotated at corner four during the early running.
Tsunoda slid over the exit kerbs before sliding over the gravel trap, and was lucky to escape with just a minor contact of the barrier.
Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton also spun, at the final moments of the session, spinning around through the quick descending Mergulho turn before the final corner on to the pit straight.
The veteran finished practice in P19, trailing team-mate Charles Leclerc.
Norris and Piastri were significantly quicker of the rest of the field, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber third fastest, 0.619secs behind Piastri's pace.
The Aston Martin of the Spanish driver was fourth fastest, with the Sauber of Bortoleto in front of the Mercedes of Russell and the Alpine of Gasly and Williams' Carlos Sainz.
