🔗 Share this article Norris Edges Out Piastri in Sao Paulo Practice Session The British driver has outscored Oscar Piastri at all of the previous five grands prix. Lando Norris edged out fellow driver and championship contender Oscar Piastri for the fastest time in the closing stages of practice at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. The British racer, who took the championship lead from Piastri by just one point after taking the win in the Mexican Grand Prix two weeks ago, outpaced the Australian by a tiny margin of 0.023secs. Earlier in the session, Piastri had been the fastest McLaren driver during the running before sprint qualifying scheduled for 6:30 PM GMT. The Red Bull star, the other racer in the championship fight, sitting 36 points behind behind Norris, finished in P17 as his team ran a unique setup. His teammate the Japanese driver was the sole competitor to go off, albeit lightly, when he spun at corner four early in the session. The Japanese lost control over the track edges before spinning across the gravel trap, and was lucky to get away with just a minor contact of the barrier. The Ferrari of the seven-time champion also lost it, at the final moments of the practice, rotating twice through the fast downhill Mergulho corner approaching the final bend on to the main straight. Hamilton finished practice in 19th, one place behind teammate Charles Leclerc. The McLaren drivers were significantly quicker of the rest of the field, with the German's Sauber in third, 0.619 seconds slower than Piastri's best. Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso was fourth fastest, with the Sauber of Gabriel Bortoleto in front of Mercedes' George Russell and Alpine's Pierre Gasly and the Williams of Sainz.