Norris Tops Piastri in Brazilian Practice Session
Lando Norris has outperformed Oscar Piastri at each of the past five race weekends.
Lando Norris just pipped team-mate and championship contender Oscar Piastri for the top spot in the closing stages of practice at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
The British racer, who seized the championship lead from his teammate by one point after taking the win in the Mexican Grand Prix recently, beat the Melbourne-born driver by a mere 0.023s.
Until that point, Oscar Piastri had been the fastest McLaren driver throughout the hour before sprint qualifying scheduled for 18:30 GMT.
Max Verstappen, the only other driver in realistic title contention, sitting with a 36-point deficit behind Norris, was classified in P17 as his Red Bull team opted for a alternative strategy.
His teammate the Japanese driver was the only driver to have an incident, though minor, when he rotated at Turn Four early in the session.
Tsunoda slid over the curbs on exit before sliding over the run-off area, and was blessed to avoid just a slight brush of the barrier.
The Ferrari of the seven-time champion also lost it, at the very end of the practice, turning around through the high-speed Mergulho turn before the last turn on to the pit straight.
Hamilton ended the session in P19, one place behind team-mate Charles Leclerc.
The McLaren pair were significantly quicker of the remaining drivers, with the German's Sauber third fastest, over half a second off Piastri's best.
The Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso was fourth fastest, with the Sauber of Bortoleto fifth from Mercedes' George Russell and Alpine's Gasly and Williams' Carlos Sainz.
