Norris Tops Oscar Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice

The McLaren driver just pipped fellow driver and title rival Oscar Piastri for the fastest time in the dying seconds of practice at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

The British racer, who grabbed the title advantage from his teammate by just one point after his victory in the Mexican Grand Prix a fortnight back, outpaced the Australian by a tiny margin of 0.023secs.

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

Max Verstappen, the other racer in the points battle, sitting with a 36-point deficit Norris, was classified in P17 as his Red Bull team opted for a unique setup.

Verstappen's team-mate the Japanese driver was the sole competitor to crash, though minor, when he spun at Turn Four soon after starting.

The Japanese lost control over the exit kerbs before sliding over the run-off area, and was fortunate to get away with just a light touch of the barrier.

The Ferrari of the seven-time champion also lost it, at the final moments of the session, turning around through the high-speed Mergulho turn approaching the last turn on to the main straight.

The seven-time champion finished practice in P19, trailing teammate Charles Leclerc.

The McLaren drivers were far ahead of the remaining drivers, with Nico Hulkenberg's car in third, 0.619 seconds slower than the Australian's time.

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