Norris Edges Out Oscar Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice

Lando Norris narrowly beat team-mate and title rival Oscar Piastri for the fastest time in the closing stages of practice at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

The British racer, who seized the championship lead from Piastri by a single point after winning in the Mexican Grand Prix a fortnight back, outpaced the Australian by a tiny margin of 0.023secs.

Until that point, Oscar Piastri had been the fastest McLaren driver during the running before the sprint shootout scheduled for 18:30 GMT.

The Red Bull star, the only other driver in realistic title contention, lying 36 points behind behind Norris, was classified in 17th place as his Red Bull team opted for a unique setup.

His teammate the Japanese driver was the only driver to crash, albeit lightly, when he rotated at Turn Four early in the session.

The Japanese slid over the track edges before rotating through the gravel trap, and was blessed to get away with just a slight brush of the wall.

The Ferrari of the seven-time champion also had a spin, at the final moments of the session, turning around through the fast downhill Mergulho turn leading to the final bend on to the start-finish straight.

The veteran finished practice in 19th, one place behind teammate Charles Leclerc.

The McLaren pair were far ahead of the rest of the field, with Nico Hulkenberg's car third fastest, 0.619secs slower than the Australian's time.

The Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso was in fourth, with the Sauber of Bortoleto in front of Mercedes' George Russell and the Alpine of Pierre Gasly and Williams' Carlos Sainz.