Norris Leads Oscar Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice Session
Lando Norris has outscored Oscar Piastri at all of the last five grands prix.
Lando Norris just pipped team-mate and title rival the Australian for the fastest time in the dying seconds of practice at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
The British racer, who grabbed the championship lead from Piastri by just one point after winning in the Mexican Grand Prix two weeks ago, outpaced the Melbourne-born driver by a tiny margin of 0.023secs.
Before then, Oscar Piastri had been the fastest McLaren driver throughout the hour before the sprint shootout scheduled for the evening session.
Max Verstappen, the sole remaining contender in the points battle, lying 36 points Norris, ended up in 17th place as his team followed a unique setup.
Verstappen's team-mate Yuki Tsunoda was the sole competitor to have an incident, though minor, when he spun at Turn Four soon after starting.
Tsunoda slid over the track edges before spinning across the gravel trap, and was fortunate to get away with just a slight brush of the barrier.
The Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton also had a spin, at the final moments of the practice, rotating twice through the fast downhill corner before the final corner on to the main straight.
The seven-time champion wrapped up in 19th, just behind teammate the Monegasque driver.
The McLaren drivers were well clear of the remaining drivers, with Nico Hulkenberg's car third fastest, 0.619secs behind Piastri's best.
Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso was in fourth, with Sauber's Bortoleto ahead of Mercedes' Russell and the Alpine of Gasly and Williams' Sainz.
