Norris Tops Piastri in Brazilian Practice Session

McLaren drivers in action

The British driver has outscored his teammate at all of the past five race weekends.

The McLaren driver edged out team-mate and championship contender Oscar Piastri for the quickest lap in the dying seconds of practice at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

The British racer, who took the title advantage from Piastri by just one point after winning in Mexico City recently, topped the Melbourne-born driver by a mere 0.023s.

Before then, Piastri had been the quickest of the McLaren pair throughout the hour before the sprint shootout due at the evening session.

Max Verstappen, the only other driver in the championship fight, trailing 36 points behind behind Norris, ended up in 17th place as his Red Bull team followed a unique setup.

Verstappen's team-mate the Japanese driver was the only driver to crash, albeit lightly, when he spun at corner four early in the session.

The Japanese lost control over the track edges before rotating through the run-off area, and was fortunate to escape with just a slight brush of the fence.

The Ferrari of the seven-time champion also spun, at the final moments of the practice, spinning around through the quick descending Mergulho corner leading to the final corner on to the pit straight.

The veteran ended the session in 19th place, trailing team-mate the Monegasque driver.

The McLaren drivers were well clear of the remaining drivers, with Nico Hulkenberg's car third fastest, 0.619 seconds off Piastri's best.

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

Margaret Crane
Margaret Crane

A tech enthusiast and writer passionate about exploring the latest innovations and sharing practical lifestyle advice.