Lando Norris Edges Out Oscar Piastri in Brazilian Practice
Lando Norris has outscored Oscar Piastri at all of the past five grands prix.
Lando Norris narrowly beat team-mate and championship contender the Australian for the quickest lap in the dying seconds of the practice session at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
The British racer, who grabbed the title advantage from Piastri by just one point after his victory in Mexico City two weeks ago, beat the Melbourne-born driver by 0.023 seconds.
Before then, Oscar Piastri had been the leading McLaren for most of the session before sprint qualifying due at 6:30 PM GMT.
Max Verstappen, the other racer in the championship fight, trailing with a 36-point deficit behind Norris, ended up in 17th place as his Red Bull team ran a alternative strategy.
Verstappen's team-mate Yuki Tsunoda was the sole competitor to crash, albeit lightly, when he rotated at corner four during the early running.
The Japanese lost control over the exit kerbs before rotating through the escape zone, and was blessed to avoid just a minor contact of the wall.
Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton also spun, at the conclusion of the session, spinning around through the high-speed Mergulho corner before the last turn on to the main straight.
The veteran ended the session in 19th place, one place behind team-mate the Monegasque driver.
The McLaren pair were well clear of the remaining drivers, with the German's car third fastest, 0.619secs slower than the Australian's time.
Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso was fourth fastest, with the Sauber of Gabriel Bortoleto ahead of Mercedes' Russell and Alpine's Pierre Gasly and Williams' Sainz.
