Lando Norris Edges Out Oscar Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice
Lando Norris has outperformed his teammate at all of the previous five grands prix.
Lando Norris edged out team-mate and title rival Oscar Piastri for the quickest lap in the final moments of the practice session at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
The British racer, who grabbed the title advantage from his teammate by just one point after taking the win in the Mexican Grand Prix a fortnight back, outpaced the Australian by a mere 0.023s.
Until that point, Piastri had been the fastest McLaren driver during the running before sprint qualifying set to begin at the evening session.
Max Verstappen, the other racer in the championship fight, trailing with a 36-point deficit behind Norris, ended up in 17th position as his Red Bull team opted for a alternative strategy.
Verstappen's team-mate the Japanese driver was the only driver to have an incident, albeit lightly, when he rotated at Turn Four early in the session.
The Japanese lost control over the exit kerbs before sliding over the gravel trap, and was fortunate to avoid just a light touch of the fence.
Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton also lost it, at the conclusion of the practice, turning around through the fast downhill corner approaching the final corner on to the pit straight.
Hamilton finished practice in 19th, trailing teammate the Monegasque driver.
The McLaren drivers were far ahead of the other competitors, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber third fastest, 0.619 seconds behind Piastri's best.
The Aston Martin of the Spanish driver was in fourth, with the Sauber of Gabriel Bortoleto ahead of the Mercedes of George Russell and the Alpine of Pierre Gasly and Williams' Carlos Sainz.