Norris Edges Out Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice
Lando Norris has beaten his teammate at each of the past five grands prix.
Lando Norris narrowly beat team-mate and title rival the Australian for the top spot in the final moments of practice at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
The British racer, who seized the points lead from Piastri by one point after his victory in Mexico City a fortnight back, beat the Australian by a tiny margin of 0.023secs.
Until that point, Piastri had been the quickest of the McLaren pair throughout the hour before sprint qualifying due at 6:30 PM GMT.
The Red Bull star, the only other driver in realistic title contention, trailing with a 36-point deficit behind Norris, finished in 17th position as his Red Bull team followed a unique setup.
Verstappen's team-mate Yuki Tsunoda was the sole competitor to go off, albeit lightly, when he spun at corner four during the early running.
Tsunoda spun out over the track edges before sliding over the escape zone, and was blessed to avoid just a slight brush of the wall.
Ferrari's the seven-time champion also spun, at the final moments of the session, rotating twice through the fast downhill Mergulho corner before the final bend on to the main straight.
The seven-time champion wrapped up in P19, one place behind teammate the Monegasque driver.
The McLaren drivers were far ahead of the remaining drivers, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber in third, 0.619 seconds slower than Piastri's pace.
The Aston Martin of the Spanish driver was fourth fastest, with the Sauber of Bortoleto fifth from Mercedes' George Russell and the Alpine of Pierre Gasly and Williams' Sainz.