Lando Norris Edges Out Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice
Lando Norris has beaten Oscar Piastri at each of the previous five grands prix.
The McLaren driver edged out fellow driver and championship contender the Australian for the quickest lap in the final moments of practice at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
The British racer, who seized the points lead from Piastri by just one point after his victory in Mexico City a fortnight back, beat the Australian by a tiny margin of 0.023secs.
Until that point, Oscar Piastri had been the quickest of the McLaren pair during the running before the sprint shootout due at the evening session.
The Red Bull star, the only other driver in realistic title contention, trailing with a 36-point deficit Norris, ended up in 17th position as his Red Bull team ran a unique setup.
His teammate the Japanese driver was the sole competitor to have an incident, if briefly, when he spun at the fourth corner during the early running.
The Japanese slid over the curbs on exit before sliding over the escape zone, and was lucky to avoid just a slight brush of the fence.
The Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton also had a spin, at the very end of the practice, turning around through the fast downhill Mergulho turn approaching the final bend on to the start-finish straight.
Hamilton wrapped up in 19th, trailing team-mate Charles Leclerc.
The McLaren pair were far ahead of the remaining drivers, with Nico Hulkenberg's car third fastest, over half a second slower than the Australian's time.
The Aston Martin of the Spanish driver was fourth quickest, with Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto ahead of the Mercedes of Russell and Alpine's Pierre Gasly and the Williams of Sainz.
