Norris Tops Oscar Piastri in Brazilian Practice Session
Lando Norris has beaten Oscar Piastri at each of the previous five race weekends.
Lando Norris narrowly beat team-mate and championship contender the Australian for the top spot in the closing stages of the practice session at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Norris, who took the points lead from his teammate by one point after his victory in Mexico City a fortnight back, topped the Australian by a tiny margin of 0.023secs.
Before then, Piastri had been the leading McLaren during the running before sprint qualifying scheduled for the evening session.
Max Verstappen, the sole remaining contender in realistic title contention, lying with a 36-point deficit Norris, was classified in P17 as his team opted for a different programme.
His teammate Yuki Tsunoda was the sole competitor to go off, if briefly, when he spun at corner four soon after starting.
Tsunoda spun out over the curbs on exit before spinning across the run-off area, and was fortunate to get away with just a slight brush of the wall.
Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton also lost it, at the final moments of the practice, spinning around through the high-speed Mergulho corner before the final bend on to the pit straight.
The veteran wrapped up in 19th, one place behind teammate Charles Leclerc.
The McLaren drivers were far ahead of the remaining drivers, with the German's Sauber third fastest, over half a second off Piastri's pace.
Aston Martin's the Spanish driver was fourth quickest, with the Sauber of Bortoleto fifth from Mercedes' Russell and Alpine's Gasly and the Williams of Sainz.