Norris Edges Out Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice
Lando Norris has outscored his teammate at all of the last five race weekends.
Lando Norris narrowly beat fellow driver and championship contender Oscar Piastri for the quickest lap in the final moments of the practice session at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Norris, who took the title advantage from Piastri by one point after winning in Mexico City two weeks ago, outpaced the Melbourne-born driver by 0.023 seconds.
Until that point, Oscar Piastri had been the leading McLaren during the running before the sprint shootout scheduled for 6:30 PM GMT.
Max Verstappen, the only other driver in the championship fight, lying 36 points Norris, ended up in 17th position as his Red Bull team followed a unique setup.
Verstappen's team-mate Yuki Tsunoda was the sole competitor to go off, though minor, when he lost control at the fourth corner during the early running.
Tsunoda lost control over the curbs on exit before rotating through the escape zone, and was fortunate to escape with just a slight brush of the barrier.
Ferrari's the seven-time champion also spun, at the conclusion of the session, rotating twice through the fast downhill Mergulho corner before the last turn on to the start-finish straight.
The veteran wrapped up in P19, just behind team-mate Charles Leclerc.
The McLaren pair were significantly quicker of the other competitors, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber P3, 0.619secs behind the Australian's time.
The Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso was in fourth, with the Sauber of Gabriel Bortoleto fifth from the Mercedes of George Russell and the Alpine of Gasly and the Williams of Sainz.
