Norris Tops Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice Session
Lando Norris has outperformed his teammate at all of the past five grands prix.
Lando Norris edged out fellow driver and title rival Oscar Piastri for the quickest lap in the dying seconds of practice at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Norris, who grabbed the points lead from his teammate by just one point after winning in Mexico City recently, topped the Australian by 0.023 seconds.
Before then, Piastri had been the leading McLaren during the running before sprint qualifying due at 6:30 PM GMT.
Max Verstappen, the sole remaining contender in the points battle, lying with a 36-point deficit behind Norris, was classified in 17th place as his team opted for a alternative strategy.
His teammate Yuki Tsunoda was the only driver to go off, though minor, when he rotated at the fourth corner soon after starting.
Tsunoda lost control over the curbs on exit before sliding over the run-off area, and was fortunate to get away with just a minor contact of the fence.
Ferrari's the seven-time champion also had a spin, at the final moments of the session, spinning around through the quick descending Mergulho turn approaching the last turn on to the start-finish straight.
The seven-time champion ended the session in P19, one place behind teammate Charles Leclerc.
Norris and Piastri were far ahead of the other competitors, with Nico Hulkenberg's car third fastest, over half a second slower than Piastri's pace.
Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso was fourth fastest, with Sauber's Bortoleto fifth from Mercedes' Russell and Alpine's Gasly and Williams' Sainz.
