Norris Leads Oscar Piastri in Brazilian Practice
Lando Norris has beaten Oscar Piastri at each of the past five race weekends.
The McLaren driver narrowly beat team-mate and championship contender Oscar Piastri for the top spot in the final moments of the practice session at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
The British racer, who took the points lead from his teammate by a single point after taking the win in Mexico City a fortnight back, topped the Melbourne-born driver by a mere 0.023s.
Until that point, Piastri had been the fastest McLaren driver throughout the hour before the sprint shootout set to begin at 6:30 PM GMT.
The Red Bull star, the sole remaining contender in the championship fight, trailing with a 36-point deficit Norris, was classified in 17th place as his Red Bull team opted for a alternative strategy.
His teammate Yuki Tsunoda was the sole competitor to crash, albeit lightly, when he spun at the fourth corner early in the session.
Tsunoda slid over the curbs on exit before spinning across the gravel trap, and was fortunate to avoid just a minor contact of the barrier.
The Ferrari of the seven-time champion also had a spin, at the very end of the session, turning around through the high-speed Mergulho corner leading to the final corner on to the start-finish straight.
The seven-time champion wrapped up in P19, one place behind team-mate Charles Leclerc.
The McLaren drivers were far ahead of the other competitors, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber in third, 0.619secs off the Australian's time.
The Aston Martin of the Spanish driver was fourth fastest, with the Sauber of Bortoleto in front of Mercedes' Russell and Alpine's Pierre Gasly and the Williams of Sainz.
