Lando Norris Edges Out Oscar Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice
The British driver has beaten Oscar Piastri at each of the last five race weekends.
The McLaren driver just pipped team-mate and championship contender Oscar Piastri for the fastest time in the closing stages of the practice session at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
The British racer, who seized the championship lead from his teammate by a single point after his victory in Mexico City two weeks ago, outpaced the Australian by a tiny margin of 0.023secs.
Earlier in the session, Piastri had been the fastest McLaren driver throughout the hour before the sprint shootout scheduled for 6:30 PM GMT.
The Red Bull star, the other racer in the points battle, trailing 36 points behind Norris, ended up in 17th place as his Red Bull team ran a different programme.
His teammate the Japanese driver was the sole competitor to go off, though minor, when he lost control at Turn Four early in the session.
The Japanese spun out over the track edges before rotating through the escape zone, and was lucky to escape with just a light touch of the barrier.
Ferrari's the seven-time champion also lost it, at the very end of the practice, turning around through the high-speed Mergulho corner leading to the last turn on to the pit straight.
The veteran wrapped up in 19th place, just behind teammate Charles Leclerc.
The McLaren drivers were significantly quicker of the rest of the field, with Nico Hulkenberg's car in third, over half a second slower than Piastri's pace.
Aston Martin's the Spanish driver was in fourth, with Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto in front of the Mercedes of Russell and Alpine's Pierre Gasly and the Williams of Carlos Sainz.
