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The McLaren driver narrowly beat fellow driver and title rival the Australian for the quickest lap in the closing stages of the practice session at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

The British racer, who grabbed the points lead from Piastri by one point after taking the win in Mexico City a fortnight back, beat the Australian by 0.023 seconds.

Earlier in the session, Oscar Piastri had been the quickest of the McLaren pair throughout the hour before sprint qualifying set to begin at 18:30 GMT.

The Red Bull star, the sole remaining contender in the points battle, lying 36 points behind behind Norris, was classified in 17th place as his Red Bull team opted for a alternative strategy.

His teammate Yuki Tsunoda was the sole competitor to crash, if briefly, when he rotated at corner four soon after starting.

The Japanese lost control over the exit kerbs before spinning across the run-off area, and was blessed to avoid just a slight brush of the barrier.

Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton also lost it, at the conclusion of the practice, turning around through the high-speed Mergulho corner before the final bend on to the pit straight.

The seven-time champion finished practice in 19th place, just behind team-mate the Monegasque driver.

The McLaren drivers were well clear of the other competitors, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber in third, 0.619secs off Piastri's pace.

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