Lando Norris Tops Oscar Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice Session
Lando Norris has beaten his teammate at all of the last five grands prix.
Lando Norris narrowly beat fellow driver and championship contender the Australian for the top spot in the final moments of practice at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Norris, who took the points lead from his teammate by one point after his victory in Mexico City recently, topped the Melbourne-born driver by 0.023 seconds.
Before then, Piastri had been the leading McLaren throughout the hour before sprint qualifying scheduled for the evening session.
Max Verstappen, the only other driver in the points battle, trailing 36 points behind Norris, was classified in P17 as his Red Bull team opted for a unique setup.
Verstappen's team-mate the Japanese driver was the sole competitor to crash, though minor, when he spun at corner four early in the session.
The Japanese lost control over the track edges before sliding over the escape zone, and was lucky to get away with just a light touch of the wall.
Ferrari's the seven-time champion also spun, at the final moments of the session, turning around through the fast downhill corner before the last turn on to the pit straight.
The veteran finished practice in 19th, trailing team-mate the Monegasque driver.
The McLaren pair were well clear of the rest of the field, with the German's car third fastest, over half a second behind the Australian's time.
Aston Martin's the Spanish driver was fourth fastest, with Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto fifth from Mercedes' Russell and the Alpine of Pierre Gasly and Williams' Carlos Sainz.
