Lando Norris Leads Piastri in Brazilian Practice
The British driver has outperformed Oscar Piastri at each of the previous five grands prix.
The McLaren driver narrowly beat fellow driver and championship contender the Australian for the quickest lap in the final moments of practice at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Norris, who seized the points lead from his teammate by a single point after winning in Mexico City recently, outpaced the Australian by a tiny margin of 0.023secs.
Until that point, Piastri had been the leading McLaren for most of the session before sprint qualifying due at the evening session.
The Red Bull star, the sole remaining contender in the points battle, lying 36 points behind Norris, finished in 17th place as his Red Bull team ran a unique setup.
His teammate Yuki Tsunoda was the sole competitor to go off, albeit lightly, when he rotated at the fourth corner soon after starting.
The Japanese lost control over the track edges before sliding over the escape zone, and was blessed to escape with just a light touch of the barrier.
Ferrari's the seven-time champion also spun, at the very end of the practice, turning around through the quick descending Mergulho turn leading to the final bend on to the pit straight.
The seven-time champion wrapped up in P19, trailing teammate the Monegasque driver.
The McLaren drivers were significantly quicker of the other competitors, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber third fastest, 0.619 seconds slower than Piastri's best.
The Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso was in fourth, with the Sauber of Bortoleto in front of the Mercedes of George Russell and Alpine's Gasly and the Williams of Sainz.
