Lando Norris Leads Oscar Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice Session

Lando Norris just pipped team-mate and championship contender Oscar Piastri for the quickest lap in the closing stages of practice at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Norris, who seized the title advantage from his teammate by just one point after taking the win in the Mexican Grand Prix two weeks ago, topped the Australian by a mere 0.023s.

Before then, Oscar Piastri had been the leading McLaren throughout the hour before the sprint shootout due at 6:30 PM GMT.

Max Verstappen, the only other driver in realistic title contention, trailing 36 points behind Norris, finished in 17th place as his Red Bull team followed a different programme.

Verstappen's team-mate Yuki Tsunoda was the only driver to go off, albeit lightly, when he lost control at corner four during the early running.

Tsunoda slid over the track edges before spinning across the gravel trap, and was lucky to avoid just a slight brush of the fence.

Ferrari's the seven-time champion also lost it, at the final moments of the practice, spinning around through the quick descending Mergulho corner approaching the final bend on to the pit straight.

The seven-time champion ended the session in 19th place, one place behind team-mate Charles Leclerc.

The McLaren pair were significantly quicker of the remaining drivers, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber P3, over half a second off the Australian's time.

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