Norris Tops Oscar Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice
The British driver has outperformed his teammate at all of the past five grands prix.
Lando Norris edged out fellow driver and title rival the Australian for the top spot in the final moments of practice at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
The British racer, who took the title advantage from his teammate by just one point after winning in the Mexican Grand Prix two weeks ago, topped the Australian by a mere 0.023s.
Before then, Piastri had been the quickest of the McLaren pair throughout the hour before the sprint shootout set to begin at 18:30 GMT.
Max Verstappen, the only other driver in realistic title contention, sitting with a 36-point deficit behind Norris, ended up in 17th position as his Red Bull team opted for a different programme.
His teammate Yuki Tsunoda was the only driver to have an incident, albeit lightly, when he lost control at Turn Four during the early running.
Tsunoda slid over the exit kerbs before sliding over the gravel trap, and was fortunate to escape with just a minor contact of the barrier.
The Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton also had a spin, at the very end of the practice, rotating twice through the quick descending corner before the last turn on to the main straight.
Hamilton ended the session in P19, trailing teammate Charles Leclerc.
The McLaren pair were well clear of the remaining drivers, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber P3, over half a second slower than Piastri's best.
Aston Martin's the Spanish driver was fourth fastest, with Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto ahead of the Mercedes of George Russell and Alpine's Gasly and the Williams of Sainz.
