Lando Norris Tops Piastri in Brazilian Practice Session

Lando Norris just pipped fellow driver and championship contender the Australian for the fastest time in the dying seconds of the practice session at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Norris, who seized the title advantage from Piastri by just one point after taking the win in the Mexican Grand Prix a fortnight back, outpaced the Australian by a mere 0.023s.

Before then, Piastri had been the fastest McLaren driver for most of the session before sprint qualifying due at 18:30 GMT.

The Red Bull star, the only other driver in the championship fight, sitting with a 36-point deficit Norris, was classified in P17 as his team followed a alternative strategy.

Verstappen's team-mate the Japanese driver was the only driver to go off, though minor, when he spun at Turn Four early in the session.

The Japanese lost control over the track edges before spinning across the gravel trap, and was blessed to escape with just a minor contact of the wall.

The Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton also had a spin, at the very end of the practice, rotating twice through the fast downhill Mergulho corner before the last turn on to the main straight.

Hamilton ended the session in 19th, just behind teammate Charles Leclerc.

The McLaren pair were far ahead of the rest of the field, with Nico Hulkenberg's car third fastest, over half a second off Piastri's best.

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