Norris Leads Oscar Piastri in Brazilian Practice Session

Lando Norris edged out fellow driver and championship contender the Australian for the top spot in the final moments of the practice session at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

The British racer, who took the points lead from Piastri by one point after winning in the Mexican Grand Prix recently, outpaced the Australian by a mere 0.023s.

Earlier in the session, Oscar Piastri had been the leading McLaren throughout the hour before sprint qualifying set to begin at the evening session.

Max Verstappen, the only other driver in realistic title contention, sitting with a 36-point deficit Norris, finished in 17th position as his team ran a unique setup.

His teammate the Japanese driver was the sole competitor to crash, albeit lightly, when he lost control at corner four early in the session.

Tsunoda slid over the curbs on exit before sliding over the gravel trap, and was lucky to avoid just a slight brush of the wall.

The Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton also had a spin, at the conclusion of the practice, spinning around through the high-speed corner approaching the final corner on to the start-finish straight.

The veteran wrapped up in P19, trailing teammate the Monegasque driver.

The McLaren pair were well clear of the remaining drivers, with the German's Sauber in third, 0.619 seconds slower than Piastri's best.

Aston Martin's the Spanish driver was fourth quickest, with the Sauber of Gabriel Bortoleto ahead of Mercedes' Russell and the Alpine of Gasly and Williams' Carlos Sainz.