Norris Edges Out Piastri in Brazilian Practice
Lando Norris has outscored his teammate at all of the past five grands prix.
The McLaren driver edged out fellow driver and title rival the Australian for the fastest time in the final moments of the practice session at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Norris, who seized the championship lead from Piastri by one point after taking the win in Mexico City recently, outpaced the Australian by a mere 0.023s.
Earlier in the session, Oscar Piastri had been the leading McLaren throughout the hour before sprint qualifying scheduled for the evening session.
Max Verstappen, the other racer in the points battle, trailing with a 36-point deficit Norris, finished in P17 as his team opted for a different programme.
His teammate Yuki Tsunoda was the sole competitor to crash, though minor, when he rotated at Turn Four during the early running.
The Japanese lost control over the curbs on exit before rotating through the run-off area, and was lucky to get away with just a slight brush of the fence.
The Ferrari of the seven-time champion also spun, at the conclusion of the practice, turning around through the fast downhill corner approaching the final corner on to the main straight.
The seven-time champion finished practice in P19, trailing team-mate Charles Leclerc.
The McLaren pair were significantly quicker of the remaining drivers, with the German's Sauber P3, over half a second slower than Piastri's best.
Aston Martin's the Spanish driver was fourth quickest, with the Sauber of Gabriel Bortoleto fifth from Mercedes' Russell and the Alpine of Gasly and Williams' Carlos Sainz.
