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The McLaren driver edged out team-mate and title rival Oscar Piastri for the quickest lap in the final moments of practice at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

Norris, who grabbed the points lead from his teammate 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, Oscar Piastri had been the leading McLaren during the running before the sprint shootout due at the evening session.

The Red Bull star, the only other driver in the championship fight, trailing 36 points behind behind Norris, finished in P17 as his Red Bull team followed a unique setup.

Verstappen's team-mate the Japanese driver was the sole competitor to go off, if briefly, when he spun at the fourth corner during the early running.

The Japanese lost control over the exit kerbs before spinning across the escape zone, and was fortunate to escape with just a light touch of the barrier.

The Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton also had a spin, at the very end of the practice, spinning around through the high-speed corner before the final corner on to the pit straight.

The veteran finished practice in P19, trailing team-mate the Monegasque driver.

Norris and Piastri were far ahead of the other competitors, with the German's Sauber P3, over half a second behind Piastri's pace.

The Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso was fourth fastest, with the Sauber of Bortoleto ahead of the Mercedes of Russell and Alpine's Gasly and Williams' Carlos Sainz.