🔗 Share this article

The McLaren driver just pipped team-mate and title rival the Australian for the quickest lap in the dying seconds of the practice session at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

Norris, who grabbed the championship lead from Piastri by a single point after his victory in Mexico City recently, topped the Melbourne-born driver by 0.023 seconds.

Before then, Oscar Piastri had been the leading McLaren throughout the hour before the sprint shootout set to begin at the evening session.

The Red Bull star, the other racer in the championship fight, sitting 36 points behind Norris, ended up in P17 as his team ran a unique setup.

His teammate the Japanese driver was the sole competitor to crash, if briefly, when he rotated at the fourth corner soon after starting.

The Japanese slid over the curbs on exit before sliding over the gravel trap, and was fortunate to get away with just a minor contact of the wall.

The Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton also lost it, at the final moments of the session, rotating twice through the high-speed Mergulho turn approaching the final corner on to the main straight.

The seven-time champion finished practice in 19th, one place behind team-mate Charles Leclerc.

Norris and Piastri were far ahead of the other competitors, with Nico Hulkenberg's car third fastest, over half a second behind Piastri's best.

The Aston Martin of the Spanish driver was fourth fastest, with Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto fifth from the Mercedes of Russell and the Alpine of Pierre Gasly and Williams' Carlos Sainz.