Lando Norris Leads Piastri in Brazilian Practice
Lando Norris has outscored Oscar Piastri at each of the past five grands prix.
Lando Norris edged out fellow driver and title rival the Australian for the top spot in the final moments of practice at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Norris, who seized the title advantage from his teammate by just one point after taking the win in the Mexican Grand Prix two weeks ago, outpaced the Melbourne-born driver by 0.023 seconds.
Earlier in the session, Oscar Piastri had been the quickest of the McLaren pair during the running before the sprint shootout due at 6:30 PM GMT.
Max Verstappen, the other racer in the points battle, sitting with a 36-point deficit behind Norris, ended up in 17th position as his team opted for a unique setup.
His teammate Yuki Tsunoda was the only driver to crash, if briefly, when he lost control at Turn Four during the early running.
Tsunoda spun out over the exit kerbs before spinning across the run-off area, and was fortunate to get away with just a light touch of the fence.
The Ferrari of the seven-time champion also had a spin, at the very end of the practice, spinning around through the quick descending Mergulho corner approaching the last turn on to the start-finish straight.
The veteran ended the session in 19th place, one place behind team-mate the Monegasque driver.
The McLaren pair were significantly quicker of the remaining drivers, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber P3, 0.619 seconds behind the Australian's time.
Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso was fourth fastest, with Sauber's Bortoleto ahead of the Mercedes of George Russell and the Alpine of Gasly and Williams' Sainz.
